The pandemic took a significant toll on healthcare professionals due to the increase in critical patients, decrease in staff, reduced supplies, and greater safety risks. While these challenges have plagued the industry prior to the pandemic, the effects were greatly exacerbated by the worldwide crisis. According to a recent AMN Healthcare survey focused on the ongoing impact of the pandemic, 30% of nurses say they remain likely to leave their career in healthcare and 18% say they will retire from nursing, demonstrating a continued drop in retention and satisfaction. The survey notes that long-term planning changes are necessary within health facilities, especially with the use of emerging technologies and actionable analytics to extend the reach of limited healthcare staff.
According to a recent University of Chicago Medicine study, caregivers would need to work 26.7 hours per day to fulfill the average patient care needs. Implementing emerging digital solutions is essential to modify an organization’s operations, processes, and services to ease the staff workload and ensure organizations are prepared for any future challenges. It’s more important than ever that healthcare leadership considers a digital transformation to accelerate healthcare with a focus on staff satisfaction and patient engagement.
Digital technology such as interactive patient care systems (IPS) provides improved operational efficiency and satisfaction for staff as well as superior outcomes and experiences for patients. Easing healthcare professionals’ workloads through pivotal transformations is key to reducing burnout and supporting staff retention. This approach provides new value and reduces stressors on both staff and patients. Through emerging technology, healthcare decision-makers can benefit the human experience by improving the well-being of staff, patients, and loved ones.
Increasing Operational Efficiency to Combat Shortages
According to the Josh Bersin Company’s Global Workforce Intelligence (GWI) Project, demand for nursing positions accounts for more than half of all open jobs in healthcare. The industry report notes that recruiting solutions can only solve 10-15% of the problem. Instead, it is critical to focus on talent retention and support for the existing workforce. When implemented correctly, digital solutions allow staff to streamline the tasks of a million nursing jobs. Data-driven solutions improve productivity and reduce costs by delivering effective care through efficient processes.
One of the process improvements supplied by data-driven solutions is the tools necessary for patients to make informed care decisions. This grants providers the space to practice at the top of their licenses. Collaborative care increases patient involvement in their own journey, ensuring staff are available to spend more time providing high-quality care. For example, advanced IPS leverages data within the patient’s EHR to select customized educational materials. This allows patients to become more knowledgeable and take control of their circumstances by making informed decisions.
Reassigning non-clinical care and administrative tasks through an IPS system allows staff to focus on patient care. A McKinsey report on nursing reveals the desire to spend more time on patient care, and the potential to free up to 15% of caregiver time through technology enablement, automation, and improved delegation of tasks. The time-savings from advanced technology solutions improve workloads, workplace satisfaction, and the ability to spend time directly with patients. These changes can increase retention, but they will require healthcare organizations to adapt away from their current state of processes to build a more sustainable workload.
Providing the Support Your Team Needs
One way to reposition current processes is with an advanced IPS communication hub that’s focused on empowerment, education, and entertainment. These tools assist in tailoring care to the unique needs and preferences of each patient, easing the job of clinicians. In-room Digital Whiteboards give patients information about their care team, as well as daily schedules, prescribed education, and medications. This information enhances efficiency by improving patient-caregiver communication and connection, making relevant data easily accessible, and automating the task of manual whiteboard updates. Similarly, digital door signs present key information for the care team to improve safety, quality, and communication with patients and families. Touchscreen controls improve staff efficiency through always-on display updates in real-time from medical records, based on what is most important to the care team.
Caregivers can practice at the top of their licenses and garner more job satisfaction when non-clinical tasks are automated to optimize their in-person time with patients. Staff and patients typically get the most out of human interactions, creating opportunities to build rapport and trust, understand preferences, and respond in real-time to feedback. With the promise to re-direct processes and automate tasks that are increasingly difficult and time-consuming for clinicians, patient engagement systems provide greater opportunities for caregivers and patients to connect.
Improving the Environment and Empowering Staff
Burnout is reported as one of the main staffing concerns in healthcare and is the top reason nurses leave the industry ahead of retirement. Time constraints are noted as a key factor in physician burnout. In fact, 47% of those surveyed by the American Academy of Physician Associates responded that their healthcare providers appeared overburdened, and 71% expressed concern that provider demands were too high. McKinsey reported that 75% of those who left a job in the past 18 months felt undervalued, which was a leading factor in their departure. Additionally, 56% reported that the most effective initiative to support well-being is appropriate recognition. There are various ways to respond to this recognition gap, including direct acknowledgment and reinforcement of appreciation.
As nurse retention challenges continue to affect facilities, it’s clear that leadership needs to go beyond incentivizing staff to remain in their current environment and must improve the environment itself. Healthcare organizations can improve their culture with digital tools that deliver tailored recognition in a timely and meaningful way. Technology providers can offer leadership surveys and feedback to enable management to collect data and share stories on superior care. Real-time feedback improves the patient and caregiver experience by proactively identifying and addressing service, contributing to the empowerment of staff and patients, and lessening the feelings of burnout. Through integrations with partner organizations such as DAISY and Wambi, patients can use an IPS to access nurse recognition programs that facilitate personalized appreciation messages. This contributes to “mattering,” the feeling that one makes a difference. This has been shown to correlate with higher engagement and lower burnout.
Boost Retention with an IPS Partner
Retaining and attracting qualified nurses and clinicians has reached a critical breaking point in healthcare facilities across the country. As administrators see monetary and scheduling incentives fall short in meeting staffing goals, it is time to invest in a system that improves the overall experience, not just for patients, but also for caregivers and staff. Healthcare leadership and facility managers need to consider the value of supporting staff well-being and enhancing the overall human experience.
About Dave Bennett
Dave Bennett is the CEO of pCare. His visionary approach to patient engagement, digital and mobile technologies, and IT integration ensure continuous innovation of the #1-KLAS ranked pCare platform and a company culture dedicated to delighting customers. Prior to joining pCare, Dave served in a variety of executive roles at ViiMed, GetWellNetwork and StayWell. Dave holds a CISM certificate from ISACA and is an active member of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), and the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE).
