• Behavioral Health
  • Rural Health
  • Workforce

Rural Hospital Leadership and Workforce Development Grant

Grant Overview

The North Carolina Healthcare Association (NCHA) is committed to addressing the acute workforce issues faced by healthcare organizations in North Carolina. Lanes of work in our strategy include workplace violence, pipeline development, retention and burnout. We are continually promoting opportunities to support our members and look for ways to bolster their internal efforts, especially in developing their existing talent through education, training and up-skilling.  

For over the past 20 years, NCHA’s 501(c)(3) affiliate, The North Carolina Healthcare Foundation (NCHF), has partnered closely with hospitals and other healthcare providers to support organizations in building the internal capabilities needed to deliver high quality, safe, affordable, and accessible healthcare. Healthcare organizations have been supported via: participation in high quality, evidenced based training and certification programs; direct coaching on improvement programs, and through access to local and national subject matter experts.  

In an increasingly complex healthcare landscape with growing workforce challenges, NCHA and NCHF have an enduring commitment to supporting hospital workforce development. More specifically, NCHF is prioritizing grant support to rural workforce development as rural hospitals continue to operate with limited resources needed to serve rural communities. NCHF is offering the following grant opportunity to help rural hospitals close the gap on identified workforce challenges.   

Fund Purpose

Successful applicants will propose activities in one or more of the following areas related to rural workforce development:

  • Leadership development training and/or certification programs targeting hospital leadership, mid-level managers, clinicians, or front-line staff. Applicants will have a clear plan for supporting the success of participants and ensuring the transfer of new skills and capabilities to achieve organization objectives. 
  • Workshops and/or simulation-based skill building in areas such as: performance improvement and patient safety, health equity, population health, and workplace violence. 
  • Increasing cultural competency at all organizational levels (including Boards)
  • Identifying and addressing gaps in racial equity through a community-based participatory engagement strategy. 
  • Testing and implementation of innovative approaches to addresses workforce burnout and resilience. 
  • Building internal training and development capabilities using train-the-trainer programs. 
Award Details

Eligible Applicants

  • North Carolina Critical Access Hospitals  
  • North Carolina small and rural hospitals under 50 beds (as defined by the HRSA Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program grant eligibility criteria) 

Expected # of awards:  8

Award Amount:  Up to $50,000 per organization

Grant Term:  12-24 months

Application Deadline:  March 10, 2023 

Expected Award Announcement Date:  April 14, 2023 

Proposal Instructions
  1. Submit the grant application via the Application Portal 
  2. Complete and upload a detailed Project Narrative and budget using the provided templates in the application portal. 
  3. Submission Deadline: March 10, 2023 (Incomplete proposals and proposals submitted after the deadline will not be considered). 

For questions related to this grant opportunity, contact Dean Higgins at dhiggins@ncha.org or 919-677-4212 or Sarah Cavaiani at scavaiani@ncha.org or 919-677-4233 

Funded Projects
  • Alleghany Memorial Hospital – “Employee Development and Retention”
  • Ashe Memorial Hospital – “Workforce Development Through Lifesaving Skills”
  • Charles A. Cannon Memorial Hospital – “Developing a Preceptorship Training Program for Front-Line Nursing Staff”
  • ECU Health – “Rural Hospital Operational Efficiencies through Lean Six Sigma Green Belt”
  • Hoke Healthcare – “Leadership Development for Hoke Hospital Managers”
  • J. Arthur Dosher Memorial Hospital – “Workforce Courses for the Continuum of Care”
  • Martin General Hospital – “Workplace Violence/Crisis Invention Training”
  • Pender Memorial Hospital – “High-performing, change-ready and resilient team”
  • St. Luke’s Hospital – “Training and Retention of the Rural Workforce”

NCHA Staff Contact