While implementing strategies to attract and retain bedside nurses continues to be a top priority, it's not the only staffing challenge hospitals are facing, Robert Weiss, regional business operations manager at Connecticut's Hartford HealthCare Central Region, told Becker's.
The healthcare system created a general operations associate role to give people in the community a chance to see if they would like to pursue a career in a hospital — a move that also provides individuals with on-the-job training in departments with high turnover.
Mr. Weiss is actively working with organizations in underserved areas to give people the opportunity to have a career they might not have ever thought about pursuing, said Roxanne Aldi-Quaresima, MSN, APRN, regional nursing director of Hartford HealthCare Central Region's nursing professional development and education program.
Ms. Aldi-Quaresima and Mr. Weiss are working together on a two-pronged approach to encouraging people to consider the health system as the first or next stop on their career path. While Mr. Weiss focuses on the general operations associate program, the nurse leader and her team are inviting nursing students in area schools to join the "student nurse advanced pipeline."
The new per diem and part-time operations hires are able to "try out" positions in multiple support services departments — transport, food and nutrition, and environmental services — to see if they can find a job they enjoy. Individuals who have been taking advantage of the opportunity to join the program are 18 and older who are looking for their next step after high school graduation.
"This is all budget neutral because of high vacancies in these areas," Mr. Weiss said. "We bring these people in to fill shifts that would otherwise not be covered. This also reduces overtime."
Mr. Weiss works with community organizations who are helping people find employment. Anyone interested in becoming a general operations associate has the opportunity to choose one of the three departments and work there for a couple of months.
"Then we evaluate the situation. Are they happy? If they are, we see if we can backfill an open position. If not, we give them a chance to try out another department," Mr. Weiss said.
The employees start out per diem or part-time, and the goal is to hire them into full-time open positions. "We give them a financial incentive if they are willing to be cross-trained so they can flip back and forth between two positions," he said.
Ms. Aldi-Quaresima said she and Mr. Weiss are working together to make the healthcare system a go-to resource for career opportunities. "We are working with schools and organizations and talking with people to let them know, 'We really want the chance to work with you — to give you a career opportunity. Come join us,''' she said.