This chapter gives the reader a close look at what a workforce development needs assessment might entail, as well as the twists and turns that are inevitably encountered in almost any assessment of this type. The authors describe a case example in the context of direct service providers (home healthcare personnel, nursing assistants, and so forth) and a complex needs assessment project in this area that employed a three‐phase model of needs assessment. They note that the phases, which seem distinct on paper, blur and overlap in practice so that rigid adherence to them must be tempered by what the real world imposes on the situation. In the last part of the chapter the role and stance of those collecting and analyzing needs data are examined, as well as lessons learned from having to make various adjustments to the assessment process as it moves forward.
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