Appealing
to a spirit of humanity in recruitment and
retention of staff
Friday, October 28,
2005 -- John Driscoll
New statistics revealing that the nursing
shortage in Canada is set to worsen are not
surprising, says Fraser Wilson, OMNI CEO.
The Canadian Nurses Association released
data Wednesday showing an aging workforce
of registered nurses, with almost twice as
many nurses over the age of 50 as there are
under the age of 35. The Canadian Institute
for Health Information compiled the data.
About a third of the 263,356 registered nurses
in Canada will be eligible for retirement
in the next five years, according to the 2004
Workforce Profile of RNs in Canada. The data
also shows that 10.5 per cent of RNs work
in long term care homes compared to 62.5 per
cent in hospitals and 13.2 per cent in community
health.
The average age of RNs was 44.6 years old
in 2004 compared to 43.3 years old in 2002,
according to the profile. The average age
of registered staff at OMNI homes is close
to the Canadian average, Fraser says.
The data is not telling us anything new,
Fraser points out. “We have known about
this for years.” This is a health care
challenge faced not only in Canada or North
America but also around the world, he says.
“The challenge is real,” Fraser
says. “In rural areas, homes are facing
challenges recruiting RNs for evening and
night shifts to comply with provincial regulations
that every home must have RN coverage 24 hours
a day seven days a week.”
At OMNI’s recent strategic planning
meeting, there was a focus on recruitment
and retention, not only of registered nursing
staff but staff at all levels, Fraser says.
To retain and recruit staff in the highly
competitive health care sector, OMNI’s
strategy is to appeal to the spirit of humanity
in people, he says by providing hope, purpose
and belonging to staff as well as residents.
“We must continue to strengthen who
we are by making all the people who work here
feel valued and respected,” Fraser says.
“If people coming to work knowing they
are making a difference in the lives of residents,
it makes for meaningful employment.”
Most people get into nursing to make a difference
and they must be given the new tools and new
skills to make more of a difference, Fraser
says,
“We have to do a good job in retaining
the people we have,” he says. “We
owe our reputation to those who provide the
front-line care to residents. Our principal
job is to recognize and acknowledge our staff
for the care they provide.”
Fraser says his road show earlier this year
to spread the Everyday Hero message was an
effort to have people look at the significance
of what they are doing and acknowledge that
they do make a difference in the lives of
residents.
The OMNIway web site has carried many stories
of staff at all levels who have given residents
their lives back, he points out.
Through such initiatives as supportive measures,
wound care and efforts to find alternatives
to psychotropic drugs, staff are proving to
be creative and flexible in efforts to improve
the lives of residents, Fraser says.
“We must never stop questioning what
we can do to help residents live their lives
to the fullest possible and make sure the
people who work in our homes feel valued and
respected,” he says.
