Nursing shortage: Here is what some
Hospitals are doing - part 3
Traditional benefit packages are not
always sufficiently alluring to nurses. It is possible that
employee benefits could be used more effectively to retain nurses
and reduce costly staff turnovers.
One example is payroll reduction program commonly known as 125
Reimbursement Plan. Using this plan the employee can allocate a
pre tax dollar amount per year which is anticipated as potential
expense to cover health and welfare expense.
The employer avoids having to match FICA tax and workman
compensation expense by reducing the amount of income upon which
these figures are calculated.
Not only does the employee net take home pay increases but the
employers matching FICA taxes and related pay roll expenses are
reduced (consult your tax advisor for more details on this
program).
Employee's Voice
•Annual Employee Survey
•Roundtables with CEO, VPs
•System and Divisional Townhall Meetings •Staff Meetings &
Committees
•Reward & Recognition Task Force
•Roving Cart (suggestion box)
•Nurse Week Activities
•VP Rounds on Nursing Units (all shifts) during Weeks On-Call and
for Special •Employee of the Month and Year Awards
•Employee Service Awards
•5&10 year plaques
•15 year dinner
•20+ year banquet
•Special Performance Awards - Recognition at Annual Employee
Service Awards Dinner
•Celebrate, Motivate and Decorate Task Force
Collaborative efforts between
health care organizations, societies, hospitals , private sector.
Some examples:
•In San Diego, six hospital systems have committed $1.3 million to
support a program called, "Nurses Now", which will add faculty and
additional student slots to San Diego University.
•The American Hospital Association News reports that in Laredo,
Texas, a hospital CEO worked with Texas A&M University to develop
a four-year bachelor's program and is providing $425,000 in
scholarships to local students over the next five years.
•In Morris County, New Jersey, the Board of Freeholders offered
scholarships to students who agreed to work in a long term care
facility.
•The Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council raised $600,000 to expand
student enrollment at local schools.
Magnet Hospitals: This elite class
of hospitals generally do not have problem with high nurse turn
over and recruitment. These classes of hospital (only 1-2 % of all
US Hospitals) attain and keep this designation only if they meet
stringent standards and ongoing 4 yearly evaluations.
"The label 'Magnet hospitals' originally was given to a group of
U.S. hospitals that were able to successfully recruit and retain
professional nurses during a national nursing shortage in the
early 1980s.
Studies of Magnet hospitals highlight the leadership
characteristics and professional practice attributes of nurses
within these organizations... Hospitals selected met the following
criteria:
1) nurses within the hospitals considered them good
places to practice nursing,
2) the hospitals had low turnover and
vacancy rates, and
3) the hospitals were located in areas where
there was significant regional competition for nursing services."
(JONA, January 1999). Magnet designated health care organizations
consistently outperform their peers in recruiting and retaining
nurses, resulting in increased stability in patient care systems
across the organization.
Continued in part 4 -
Importing foreign
nurses.
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