1 Expanding the Boundaries of Healthcare Human Resources Planning Christopher L. Pate St. Philip's College, USA Nancy A. Leahy St. Philip's College, USA Leonard Leos St. Philip's College, USA Chapter 1 ABSTRACT Human resources are central to healthcare services, yet leveraging these resources to meet strategic operations and operational outcomes can present challenges to leaders and human resources profes- sionals because of the complex and dynamic nature of healthcare delivery. Although the traditional roles of human resources management are necessary in supporting an organization in meeting its goals, economic, strategic, and cultural considerations are becoming increasingly important to human resources management and workforce planning in healthcare settings. This chapter presents several features of these different lenses to assist human resources managers in developing a holistic view of human resources planning in health care. INTRODUCTION "Healthcare is transitioning from a stable, comfortable, and complacent past to a confus- ing present and unpredictable future" (Begun & Heatwole, 1999, p. 342). DOI: 10.4018/978-1-61520-885-2.ch001 Although this statement was made ten years ago it is reflective of the healthcare industry of the 21 st century. Today, change is not occurring in small incremental steps, but in quantum leaps. The delivery of health care, reimbursement, technol- ogy, quality measurements, malpractice claims and awards have led to dramatic and fundamental Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.