Since its founding in the 1990s, the Bowen Center for Health Workforce Research and Policy at Indiana University School of Medicine has developed a data-driven and policy-minded approach to identifying and solving health worker problems across Indiana.
“Here in Indiana, we've helped create a nationally recognized approach for health workforce data collection and reporting,” said Hannah Maxey, PhD, MPH, RDH, director of the Bowen Center and associate professor of family medicine. “We partner with state agencies, including the professional licensing agency, to support the collection of minimum necessary data from licensed professionals at the time of license renewal. It only takes a licensee a minute or two to answer these questions, but that small effort has enormous impact for the state.”
With this approach, the Bowen Center has been able to identify workforce shortages, training opportunities and mental health concerns for the tens of thousands of Hoosiers working to keep Indiana healthy. It also has a direct policy conduit, impacting state laws using this data.
As Indiana has become a leader in this area, the Bowen Center extended its reach as a model for public universities partnering with philanthropic and state agencies to reach common workforce goals. In recent years, the center has even taken steps toward becoming a hub for other states to adopt Indiana’s model — perhaps none larger than hosting a national gathering in July that attracted representatives from 14 states, a federal agency, governance institutions and top charitable partners.
The Towards Consistency for Behavioral Health Paraprofessionals National Roundtable grew from the Lilly Endowment Inc.-sponsored Playbook for Enhancing Indiana's Mental and Behavioral Health Workforce. The center has researched how entry-level behavioral health workers are trained and regulated, as well as the impact they provide on the overall health landscape.
“As we completed early elements of our research and recently published our findings in HealthAffairs Scholar, it became clear that there was not a single ‘right’ approach,” Maxey said. “States are making policy decisions within different workforce, funding and regulatory environments. We wanted to create an opportunity for state leaders, regulators, workforce experts, educators, employers, paraprofessionals and advocates to come together and discuss the practical implications of different approaches.”
The roundtable was designed to move beyond theory and create space for informed discussion around workforce access, quality, public protection and career advancement, Maxey added.
The roundtable was a resounding success. More than 50 partners — state representatives, universities, philanthropic organizations, governmental groups — gathered in Indianapolis to swap ideas.
“It generated valuable insights that will help inform a framework for use by states and policymakers,” Maxey said. “Participants consistently emphasized the need to balance public protection with workforce access, to create meaningful career pathways and to ensure that any regulatory framework is practical and sustainable for workers, employers and communities.”
Maxey believes public universities have a duty to partner with state governments so that academic expertise can be used to further local communities.
“We are the Bowen Center at Indiana University, and we take the Indiana part seriously,” she said. “Sometimes this work isn't qualified by peer-reviewed publications. It's quantified by the number of bills that were informed by your research, or the number of times your work is cited in state programs and proposals.”
The Bowen Center is also working on projects centered around:
- Preparing master's-level behavioral health students to treat both mental health and substance use disorders
- A project on suicide prevention and care workforce policy
- Supporting state and national efforts related to behavioral health workforce policy, occupational regulation, primary care, maternal health, emergency medical services and other critical health professions
- Releasing the Behavioral Health Paraprofessional Framework, which seeks to create greater consistency among behavioral health professionals across the nation, in early 2027
“The Bowen Center will continue serving as a trusted partner for the state of Indiana, including executive and legislative branch policymakers, philanthropic foundations, professional associations and health systems seeking rigorous workforce research and policy analysis,” Maxey said. “We are looking forward to expanding partnerships across Indiana University that strengthen our institutional capacity to develop the next generation of healthcare workers.”
