WPBN: The nursing shortage is a problem that hospitals in the Wiregrass and around the state have been required to cope with for more than five years. These hospitals are attempting to tackle this issue.
According to a survey that was just released by the Alabama Department of Labor, there are more than 4,000 nursing jobs that are currently available.
People leaving the profession or moving away from it are the primary causes of these openings; nevertheless, hospital expansions are also a contributing factor.
According to the opinion of a medical expert, the ability to combat the shortage has improved, despite the fact that hospitals are still struggling to cope with it.
“The ability to recruit to positions and the desire to be back in health care is now there,” Chief Nursing Officer at Southeast Health, Melissa Owens stated.
She is of the opinion that the most recent surge in opportunities can be attributed, at least in part, to the fact that a number of hospitals across the state, including Southeast Health, are expanding their operations.
With the median age in the United States continuing to rise, there has been an accompanying rise in the demand for healthcare and the number of people working in the healthcare industry.
“Our organization is seeing more patients, our ER is busier than ever, so a lot of our growth is going to depend on the need for nurses as well,” Owens stated.
Southeast is now hiring for 58 nursing positions, all of which will be located on the newly rebuilt patient level.
This comes after they recently hired 45 recent graduates who are scheduled to begin their employment this month, and they have further roles available in the years to come.
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‘We have an ER expansion that we are looking forward to, as well as adding two additional patient towers,” Owens stated.
Hospitals also have the challenge of retaining their personnel, sometimes known as employee retention. As a result of nurses taking on additional occupations, finishing their education, or being forced to relocate because their spouses have found new employment, this situation has arisen.
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“We pride ourselves in making sure that our number one priority is employee engagement,” Owens stated. “We do a lot every year to every year to make sure our employees are happy where they work.”
Additionally, the Alabama Board of Nursing is active in the process of implementing a new procedure for the certification of nursing support technicians. The board is hopeful that this procedure will reduce the amount of work that nurses have to do.
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In the present moment, hospitals are not required to participate in the program.
In addition to stating that Southeast already has programs that are comparable to this one in place, Owens argues that it will recruit people to work in the healthcare profession.
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