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Overtime and hospital staff burnout

By Jeff on Mar 20, 2009 in Featured, Healthcare Overtime, Hospital Staffing, Nurse Overtime, Nursing Staff Management

In the current economy we are seeing many hospitals relying on their own perm staff to fill a lot more overtime hours than in the past. For some nurses and therapists this is a welcome boost to their paycheck, while for others it may be something they feel obligated as caregivers to do. No matter the circumstances it will eventually start to wear them out. There is plenty of research available showing the negative effects of too much overtime, everything from nurse burnout, to costs associated with nurse turnover, to putting patients at risk. So what can you do as a unit manager to help ease the effects of overtime on your staff?

Your ability to help them through hiring more nurses or therapists may be limited unless you can convince the financial decision makers of the savings that come with being adequately staffed. But there are things you can have an impact on.

Since you know that too much overtime is going to eventually lead to burnout, you will want to keep an eye on the signs of burnout among your staff. It is also important for you to avoid burnout yourself, so that you can be there for your staff when you sense that they are stressed and give them advice and tips for managing their stress. Below are some links that give you practical advice on how to spot and respond to you and your staff’s burnout.

Battling Burnout: Maintaining Enthusiasm in a Challenging Environment
StressedOutNurses.com
Times flies, but you don’t have to
Help staff handle stress by boosting resiliency
Nurse retention through meditation
Nursing Burnout Prevention
Why Emotions Matter: Age, Agitation, and Burnout Among Registered Nurses

Nurse Burnout is it preventable?

By Jeff on Mar 10, 2009 in Featured, Hospital Staffing

I’ve been reading a lot about nurse burnout lately. There is a ton of information on the web about it, from the signs associated with it, ways to cope with it, its impact on patients and its financial implications.

For a nurse manager there are some practical measures you can take to help reduce nurse burnout in your hospital unit. Key to this is being able to understand where it is coming from, what causes it and recognizing the symptoms. Here are some links to some great resources to help you recognize and deal with nurse burnout in your staff:

Addressing Nurse Burnout – Changing Culture Is The Cure

Institute for Healthcare Leadership

Stressed Out Nurses

Just remember that left unaddressed nurse burnout can eventually lead to losing a valuable member of your staff and that can have a real impact on the patient care you are able to provide.

Including travelers as a valued part of your healthcare staff

By Bret on Oct 28, 2008 in Featured

A recent article at HealthLeaders Media discussed the importance of treating travelling healthcare staff members the same as permanent staff. Glendive Medical Center in Montana has bought in to this philosophy and are seeing results.

Prior to this shift in their employee relations, they had struggled to get their travelers to buy in to their methodologies and hospital mission. Since their facility relied heavily on travelers and other temporary contract workers, they realized that they needed to try a different approach if they were going to improve the quality of care. They recognized that they had previously treated their travelers as outsiders.

It was at that point they decided to enhance the relationship with their travelers. This new strategy didn’t require much effort or formal statements. They simply emphasized inclusion. As they state, “make them part of the family.”

Travelers are sometimes viewed as uncommitted due to the fact that they work their 13 week contract and move on to the next assignment. But when it comes down to it, they’re really no different than your permanent staff. They strive to work in an environment where their skills can make a difference and they are treated as a valued part of the staff. Isn’t this what we all look for?