With the projected demand for healthcare professionals, colleges, universities, and technical schools are seeing an increase in enrollment and expansion of healthcare programs. Many of these positions require the same or similar coursework yet result in a different degree, certificate, or license. With this in mind, please respond to the following questions:
•The various kinds of healthcare professional are educated in separate schools but with considerable overlap in curricula and training requirements. They are, however, expected to integrate their training and work together after graduation. Furthermore, these specially trained personnel are more expensive to hire and require a larger pool of employees. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach to professional education in terms of costs, educational efficiency, and patient care quality?
•In an effort to reduce the number of needed employees, many hospitals and other healthcare institutions are promoting the "cross-training" of personnel so they can complete multiple tasks and reduce the number of specialized employees. What are the implications of cross-training, in terms of quality of care, costs, and efficiency?