Do you want to hear the good news or the bad news first? The good news is that the nursing shortage is not as bad as predicted several years ago. The bad news is that there still is a shortage projected.
If nurses continue to enter the workforce at the same rate as now, our country will have about 4% fewer RNs than it needs by 2025, according to a study published in the October issue of Medical Care.
“It’s important to keep in mind that this doesn’t get us out of the woods; the woods just are not as dark and scary as they appeared,” said Peter Buerhaus, PhD, RN, FAAN, coauthor of the nursing shortage study and Montana State University nursing economist. “We still project the nation will have a shortage of around 130,000 nurses by 2025, which is by no means a small number, but not the overwhelming shortage that we had once anticipated.”
A shortage also is predicted for physicians. The Washington Post reported that by 2025, the United States will need 90,000 more physicians. (To read more, go to http://wapo.st/1lEyKGy.)
To be able to recruit and retain the best employees and surgeons, you must stand out. Same-Day Surgery interviewed two facilities recently named “Best Places to Work in Healthcare in 2015” by Modern Healthcare. Consider their suggestions:
• Establish a positive culture, and find people who fit in it.
At Lafayette (LA) Surgical Specialty Hospital, the culture was set from the beginning by the physician owners, says Stephanie Talbot, RN, MS, OR manager. “When the physicians originally opened, they wanted high quality patient care,” Talbot says. “They also wanted a place that physicians would be proud of and a place patients wanted to come to, and where the staff would be proud of working there.”
The 20-bed hospital, which has 8,000 annual cases, is a four-time winner of the Women’s Choice Award, given by WomenCertified, for being voted one of “America’s Best Hospitals for Patient Experience” by women.
Laser Spine Institute, an organization with seven regional surgery centers with headquarters in Tampa, FL, has been named a top employer by the Tampa Bay Times, Tampa Bay Business Journal, Philly.com, and okc.BIZ, in addition to Modern Healthcare, and has been named a Most Admired Company by BestCompaniesAZ. The company has more than 1,100 corporate and healthcare professionals.
Its recruiters are very particular, says Diane DiRocco, senior director of human resources. While other healthcare organizations hire “en masse,” recruiters at Laser Spine Institute take more time. “We look for someone who is a good culture fit and has a good skill set,” DiRocco says.
The company, which has treated more than 50,000 patients, has a culture that focuses on patient satisfaction. “We encourage them to develop a relationship with the patients,” DiRocco says.
Recruiters examine applicants to see how much they focus on patient care. Other important factors of their company culture are integrity, commitment, and fun, DiRocco says. The fun part is “not true of a lot of healthcare organizations,” she says. “A lot of the time, it’s about the numbers.”
The recruiters also look for applicants who are able to get along with others. Hiring managers are included in the recruitment process, DiRocco says.
Their efforts are paying off. While the Department of Labor reports that the healthcare field has a turnover rate of about 7%, DiRocco reports that her turnover rate is no higher than 3%.
• Encourage positive communication.
Encourage a positive culture by thanking employees when they do a good job, and be specific, Talbot says. For example, say, “Thank you for staying late today to help do that case. It’s really appreciated,” she says.
Every hospital employee makes an effort to talk positively to coworkers and surgeons, Talbot says. For example, occasionally a surgeon will have a new person in the OR, Talbot says.
“I say to him or her, ‘You’ll see this person in your room. You’ll like her. She’s new to our facility, but she came from another facility, where she worked with Dr. So-and-So. She’s done cases like this before,’” she says.
Such communication contributes to a team atmosphere, she says.
• Offer a good benefits package.
Laser Spine Institute offers the usual health benefits, but it also offers tuition reimbursement, DiRocco says.
According to a recent salary survey by the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA), the benefit showing the biggest increase among respondents is tuition support. ASCA reports that 52% of respondents offer some form of tuition support, which is up from 28% in 2012.
That tuition support can be used to obtain the certified ASC (CASC) credential. The ASCA survey indicated that 14% of respondents work for surgery providers who require its administrators to hold that credential. Also, the median salary for ASC administrators who work for facilities that require the certification is 19% higher than for those who work in an ASC where it isn’t required. (For more on the ASCA salary survey results, go to www.ascassociation.org/salarysurvey.)
Laser Spine Institute also offers a range of employee discounts including child care initiatives, tickets to local theme parks, clothing stores, and cell phones. “All it takes is for an employee to call and ask, ‘Why don’t we have this?’” DiRocco says. “We jump on it and add it.”
The Institute also offers ancillary benefits including hospital indemnity, short-term disability, and pet insurance. The company also picks up 100% of the tab for telemedicine services provided by Healthiest You. (For more information, go to http://www.healthiestyou.com/#/.)
Offering good benefits is one factor that has helped attract individuals who are focused on the patients, DiRocco says. The result has been a 97% patient satisfaction rate.
“That’s what it’s all about: Shooting for the best outcomes possible, and taking care of patients,” DiRocco says. Such efforts will impact your recruitment and retention and result in a stronger healthcare workforce, she says. “They went into this field to take care of patients,” Di Rocco says. “If you give them a platform to do that, they will stay and be happy.”
