Work group established to
address healthcare shortage

The prognosis is not so good. There are not enough nurses to staff Wisconsin hospitals, long-term-care and home healthcare organizations. The shortage of qualified competent nurses will become more acute as time goes on. Nurses are only one type of healthcare workers needed. Technicians in every field, pharmacists and administrative support are also in demand.

Wisconsin hospitals are taking an active leadership role in addressing the work force shortage. The Wisconsin Health and Hospital Organization (WHA) is working with the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) to address the staffing shortages. In addition, the WHA is working with colleges and technical schools to improve recruitment efforts into the healthcare field and, collaborating with the Wisconsin Area Health Education Centers, established a work group consisting of members of all healthcare industries, including human resources directors, educators, union representatives, state agencies and representatives from state and legislative offices to identify factors leading to the worker shortages and develop strategies to address the issue. The efforts to recruit young people to go into healthcare should help make a dent in future shortages of healthcare workers.

In addition to the WHA's efforts, individual organizations are focusing on ways to recruit and retain the quality professionals they need. Facilities are offering flexible working hours, shift differentials, educational incentives, sign-on and retention bonuses and many other benefits. Although bonuses are great recruitment tools, often employees leave once the time required for the bonus has expired. Therefore, educational incentives are used a great deal in order to constantly improve the work force and allow workers to transition to positions that require higher skills. These hands-on programs go a long way in supplementing a certification or degree. Since entry-level positions are left open once current employees are promoted, educating young people about the benefits of a healthcare career is a necessity.

With the demand for healthcare professionals rising and no increase in the supply of healthcare workers in the near future, facilities are working together and with their communities to find answers to the staffing problem. Programs already in place and those in development are meant to ensure the amount of healthcare professionals is sufficient for providing quality care. Although there is no easy solution to this dilemma, cooperation between schools and hospitals, and the efforts made by all types of healthcare facilities are steps in the right direction. As the population continues to age, Wisconsin and most of the rest of the country will continue to struggle to fill their open positions. Only time will tell if the battle can be won.