Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1462389
41 NURSING SPOTLIGHT CommonSpirit's internal agency plans to start traveling in the early spring and is in the process of hiring a national director for the program. e system's goal is to have 500 nurses. Dr. Sanford said the program will be benefi- cial because it will bring down competition, and people who want to travel can still be employees within the health system. "It gives nurses who are our employees a choice if they want to be travelers or if they want to do it part time and then come back to a job within one of our hospitals or in one of our clinics. … ey won't lose their bene- fits, they won't lose their seniority. ey'll be our employees," Dr. Sanford said. Other systems are exploring similar programs, such as Charlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health, which ran a pilot in-house traveler program. e health system has also used outside agencies, which cost about triple compared to pre-pandemic. "is program was very successful, less ex- pensive than using an external travel agency and worked really well across our large health system that covers multiple states," said Patricia Mook, MSN, RN, vice president of nursing operations at Atrium Health. But internal travel programs may not be easy for other health systems to mimic, especially smaller ones. Hospitals have to be of a certain size for an internal travel program to work, meaning an individual hospital wouldn't be able to have one, Mr. Galley said. More than that, it's a complex undertaking, he said. "It's not without its challenges," Mr. Galley said. "I just think it's something that takes the resources and thought leadership to be able to do. But you're not going to find inde- pendent hospitals being able to mirror this." Dr. Sanford also recommends having a few different strategies in place to combat nurse shortages. "Don't make it your only strategy because there are so many issues that we could do better with our nursing staff. … You need to be looking at all of the different things that give nurses voice in your organization," Dr. Sanford said. n 7 ways to immediately reduce nurse strain By Mackenzie Bean and Erica Carbajal H ospitals and health systems are increasingly part- nering with nursing schools or offering academic financial assistance to bolster the nursing pipeline. While an influx of nursing students will eventually help address workforce issues, there will be at least a two-year lag before these investments pay off, and with a growing nursing shortage, hospitals can't afford to wait. A more immediate solution to reducing nurse strain is to perform an "audit" of nurses' jobs to assess which duties could be shifted to other staffers or done virtually. Becker's asked four chief nursing officers what immediate strategies come to mind if they were to do such an audit to optimize nurses' workflow. The following leaders weighed in: • Denise Mihal, BSN, RN, executive vice president and chief nursing and clinical operations officer at Winston-Sa- lem, N.C.-based Novant Health • Kathleen Sanford, BSN, RN, executive vice president and CNO of Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health • Annette Sy, DNP, RN, CNO of Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital, both in Los Angeles • Janet Tomcavage, MSN, RN, executive vice president and chief nurse executive at Danville, Pa.-based Geisinger Here's what they shared: 1. Consider how other employees in the organization can support nurses to ensure they're practicing at the top of their license. For example, pharmacy technicians could be tapped to pull medications, cutting the time nurses spend hunting and gathering necessary drugs. This could also include leveraging non-licensed employees to reduce some of the side work nurses typically do, such as stocking supplies. Another example is tapping admis- sion-discharge-transfer nurses to assist primary nurses with necessary tasks. 2. Don't forget about nurse managers and nurse leaders when looking at ways to reduce strain. The responsibilities of nurse managers have grown over time, and it's worth considering what sorts of tasks another team member may be able to do so leaders can spend more time with their front-line staff to directly manage and support them. 3. Tap technology for patient monitoring. Hospitals can adopt a tele-intensive care unit program with video mon- itoring capabilities for patients who need closer observa- tion. Another option is to use remote patient care moni- toring for high-risk fall patients, so that one staff member can watch numerous patients at once to reduce falls and consolidate nurses' workloads. 4. Replace call centers with smartphones to create a more flexible approach that enables nurses to answer calls from anywhere, instead of tying them to the nursing desk. 5. Address alarm fatigue. By implementing an integrated alarm management solution, hospitals can improve clinical processes and efficiency alongside patient experience. 6. Streamline documentation for nurses. Hospitals should assess how much time nurses are spending on charting and reporting information about their patients. Eliminat- ing unnecessary documentation and improving existing processes is another way to protect nurses' time and reduce strain. Smartphones can also be used as one-stop, universally used electronic hubs to house patient vitals, health records and internal communications. 7. Offer options to near-retirement or other experienced nurses who may be considering leaving the field. For example, hospitals can offer nurses the opportunity to be more involved in virtual care services. n