2012 Salary Survey Results: In changing times, EHPs find they must do more with less
January 1, 2013 5 minutes read
2012 Salary Survey Results
In changing times, EHPs find they must do more with less
Most receive salary boost, more responsibilities
Do more, but don’t expect more resources. Money’s tight.
Does that sound familiar? Employee health professionals have gained greater stature as the nation’s attention turns to preventive care and workplace wellness. Add to that a huge emphasis on influenza vaccination and a renewed regulatory focus in health care, which also place employee health at the forefront.
Hospital leadership may be learning to appreciate the role of employee health, but that hasn’t yet translated into a surge of budgetary support, say experts in occupational health nursing.
“To do more with less is generally the rule of thumb. [Occupational health nurses] are constantly doing more. They have less people to do the work,” says Ann Lachat, RN, BSN, COHN-S/CM, FAAOHN, CEO of the American Board for Occupational Health Nurses, a certification organization based in Hinsdale, IL, which recently released an analysis of the practice of occupational health nursing.
The salary picture improved slightly for employee health nurses, according to the 2012 HEH salary survey. Most respondents (61%) said they received a raise of 1% to 3%. But one in four said they had no change in salary.
Some 27% of 108 survey respondents said they earn between $60,000 and $69,999 and 15% said they earn between $70,000 and $79,999. (See chart, below.)
The challenge for employee health professionals is to convince hospital leadership to make them key players in the quest for cost-effective care, says Barb Maxwell, RN, MHA, COHN-S, CCM, CWCP, QRP, FAAOHN, Division Director Company Care in Occupational Health Services for HCA’s- West Florida Division in St. Petersburg.
“They have got to get in front of the senior leaders to communicate the value that they bring to the organization, and how they can partner with that organization to help with the Affordable Care Act,” she says. “But they’re going to need resources. They can’t do it on a shoe string.”
Is EH gaining recognition?
Occupational health nursing is sometimes overlooked or misunderstood. “Some folks will say, ‘Are you an occupational therapist?’” says Maxwell, who promotes occupational health nursing in schools of nursing.
Hospital leadership may still view employee health as “non-revenue producing” – even though EH professionals help prevent costly injuries, manage workers’ comp cases, and improve employee wellness, notes Maxwell.
That attitude may be changing. The Joint Commission accrediting body recently issued a 171-page monograph linking patient and worker safety. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has trained inspectors to recognize hazards in health care and announced plans to draft an infectious diseases standard that would include respiratory protection programs.
The Affordable Care Act emphasizes prevention and allows employers to increase their incentives for employee wellness programs. (See HEH, November 2012, p.129.) And the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) even added worker safety issues to its infection control survey.
At many hospitals, the employee health department now provides clinic services, including monitoring of chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure and treatment of minor ailments. “There will be new ways in which you see patients,” says Lachat.
In the ABOHN practice analysis, 56% of occupational health nurses said they have had increased responsibilities in the past few years. ABOHN’s 2011 web-based survey had 2,409 responses; about 29% were hospital-based, which was by far the largest industry group represented. (The practice analysis is available at www.abohn.org/documents/ABOHN2011PracticeAnalysisReport.pdf.)
Occupational health nurses continued to place the greatest emphasis on the primary tasks of treating work-related injuries and illnesses, maintaining recordkeeping and confidentiality of records, and managing workers’ compensation. (See box, below.)
ACA brings challenges, opportunity
Yet even as the scope of employee health expands, the health care workforce is on the verge of a major transition.
The Affordable Care Act has created uncertainty about the future, with new alliances and even mergers among large health systems, notes Dee Tyler, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN, executive president of the Association of Occupational Health Professionals in Healthcare (AOHP). Reimbursements are tighter. “There will be some tough choices” for hospitals,” Tyler says.
It’s not clear how the changing health care scene will impact employee health. Employee health professionals need to continue to promote their value to the organization and the cost-savings they provide in reduced workers’ compensation claims, medical claims and absenteeism, notes Maxwell.
Employee health could play a key role in wellness, she says. “Our employers will be looking toward us as the subject-matter expert,” she says.
Meanwhile, there are major demographic trends that will reshape employee health. In the ABOHN practice analysis, the mean age of occupational health nurses was 54. Almost one in four (24%) was 60 or older. In the HEH reader survey, 50% of respondents were 56 or older.
“We’re hoping to get more and more of the younger nurses to become interested in our profession so they can replace some of us that are nearing retirement age,” says Maxwell.
That may require reaching out to nursing schools and educating nursing students about the role of employee health, she says. Some young nurses may choose to specialize in occupational health, she says.
Aging workforce forces changes
How do you pass on wisdom from one generation of employee health professionals to another? Professional organizations are providing that bridge, says Tyler.
AOHP has long been known for the “Getting Started” workshops at the annual conference, and the “Getting Started” manual is now available for purchase online (www.aohp.org). AOHP maintains an email list serv for members, and the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN) conducts periodic webinars (www.aaohn.org).
“The long-term career-seasoned occupational health nurses are really serving as the mentors for the young ones coming in,” says Maxwell. “That’s just part of the succession.”
With the uncertainty involving the Affordable Care Act and changes in health care delivery and reimbursement, professional organizations also provide a resource for the established employee health professional.
“We’re going to be changing very drastically in everything that we do in the next few years,” says Tyler. “It’s tough to stay abreast with those changes. “It’s not just employee health [that’s changing], it’s our entire environment, from regulatory to reimbursement. All of that is going to affect what we have to respond to in employee health.”
With chapter meetings, networking and email lists, professional organizations enable employee health professionals to support each other through turbulent times, Tyler says.
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