Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control

41 NURSING SPOTLIGHT New CNO's biggest challenge: How to balance excellence with staff vacancies By Lauren Jensik Y olanda Coleman, PhD, RN, became Chica- go-based Weiss Memorial Hospital's chief nursing officer on Oct. 25. She spoke to Beck- er's in December about staffing challenges and shared her advice for other women in healthcare leadership. Note: is interview was lightly edited for length and clarity. Question: What trends are you noticing at Weiss in regards to the staffing crisis, specifi- cally regarding the departure of nurses? Dr. Yolanda Coleman: Our trends are probably similar to a lot of other hospitals in the area and across the nation. Our vacancy rates have increased, almost tripled, from what they were pre-COVID. And we have nursing vacancies in areas that we probably wouldn't have seen as many vacancies in [had it not been for COVID-19], and our vacancies go across the specialty board, even into areas like case management, which we didn't see huge vacancies in in the past. Q: How do you plan to navigate these staffing issues? YC: Some of what we've been doing quite recently is collaborating with colleges of nursing to tap into our new grad pool. We've also instituted bonuses to try to be competitive with the agency and the travel rates. We're also working with international agencies to bring in nurses from the international arena. Q: What do you anticipate being your biggest challenges in your new role? YC: Well, staffing is one of them. And then when you have gaps in staffing, you have a concern with your quality and safety. So you have to ensure that you're maintaining your level of excellent standards with your vacancies that are open. Q: What advice do you have for other women in healthcare leadership? YC: I would say you have to be passionate about your leadership role. You should have a desire to be a positive mentor. You should always exhibit a con- scious concern for patient care, continually focus on quality and safety, have a commitment and dedica- tion to the profession and also maintain the highest level of competency, and you need to be proactive in an ever-changing and hectic environment. n Mississippi health system offers 'pay-on-demand' option to nurses By Kelly Gooch O cean Springs, Miss.-based Singing River Health System is offering a "pay-on-demand" option for nurses to receive their paychecks, Jessica Lewis, the health system's executive direc- tor of human resources, told the Sun Herald. The option allows nurses to receive their paychecks "on demand," or as soon as a day after they work a shift, Ms. Lewis told the newspaper. She added that the option means "if you work today, you can actually take your paycheck out tomorrow if you need it." The "pay-on-demand" option comes amid the organization's other efforts to retain existing nurses amid staffing challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Sun Herald, Singing River also boosted wages and overtime pay for employees. Other hospitals in Mississippi are also offering perks. Memorial Hospi- tal at Gulfport (Miss.), for instance, launched a student loan repayment option to recruit registered nurses. n New York hopes scholarship push will help decrease nurse shortage By Cailey Gleeson N ew York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Nov. 18 a tuition-coverage program for 1,000 nursing students to address staffing shortages. The Nurses For Our Future Scholarship program will cover tuition at the State University of New York and City University of New York. Madia Coleman, a spokesperson for the executive office, told Becker's the expected cost for the state is $15 million. There may be a lottery for applicants. Any New York resident accepted into a SUNY or CUNY nursing pro- gram can participate in the program. Participants will complete two years' service in a New York State Health Care Facility following gradua- tion, according to Ms. Coleman. Ms. Coleman added participants will also have a part-time option if they are working concurrently in a related health facility while they earn their degree. "Just a year ago, we were celebrating our healthcare workers as the heroes they are, and the pandemic has shown us that we cannot afford a labor shortage in the healthcare industry," Ms. Hochul said. "I'm proud to announce our new Nurses For Our Future Scholarship as an important step to train more nurses and bring them into our healthcare system. SUNY and CUNY scholarships move us toward a more prosperous and equal New York by working to make sure every New Yorker has access to training programs, one-, two-, and four-year degrees, community college; SUNY and CUNY should be the pathway to the middle class." n

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