One of the criteria for the Pathways to Excellence designation is work/life balance. Rarely have I seen a hospital so committed to providing that for their nurses. Not only did they have me deliver my Chicken Soup for the Nurse’s Soul keynote outlining ways to care for themselves as they care for others, they bought every nurse in attendance my Balancing Life book! A great retention tool!

Each nurse then participated in a facilitated discussion, brainstorming ways to create physical, mental, and spiritual balance in their daily lives. Next we shared ideas on how to truly live our priorities. We decided to better listen to our kids and even kiss our husbands!

To have me share life balance with your staff, please call me at 877-844-3626. And learn more at www.NurseRecruitmentandRetention.com

If nurses can focus on the patient and not get caught up with issues that interfere with patient care, this will help to keep them at the bedside.

Cutbacks and working with less has led to the exiting of the experienced nurses because of unreasonable expectations. Providing care with less staff impacts the quality and time one nurse has to give to his/her patients…. and it affects patient care and satisfaction.

To learn more ways to keep your nurses happy at the bedside, contact me www.NurseRecruitmentandRetention.com.

They did it not for any other reason but to get dialog going about breast cancer. Now people are calling to say, “I want to work there too! ”

Isn’t it true, that when people do good works for benevolent reasons, for the sake of others, goodness comes back to them in return. Who wouldn’t want to work for a place like that. Kudos to Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.

Now, enjoy the dance!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEdVfyt-mLw

In a survey of 285 hospital chief executive officers conducted by AMN Healthcare, the nation’s largest healthcare staffing company, 95 percent of hospital CEOs said there is a shortage of physicians in the U.S., 91 percent said there is a shortage of nurses. While the short-term economic environment may have affected their recruitment and retention efforts, the long-term problem will be the need for thousands of more healthcare professionals that don’t exist today.

Over 24 percent of CEOs said the economic downturn caused them to decrease nurse recruiting efforts over the last six months, The majority, at least 64 percent, said recruiting efforts at their hospitals over the last six months had not changed.

In the next six months, 89 percent expect to maintain or increase nurse recruiting efforts. As a nurse motivational speaker and expert in nurse recruitment and retention, I can help now. Please contact me to see how I can help you recruit the nurses you need, and retain the best you have.

A three-year effort to improve the work environment for New Jersey’s nurses is under way, with 47 state hospitals set to participate.

The hospitals are participating in the Transforming Care at the Bedside initiative, to train support nurses so they can spend more time with their patients.

The training also is intended to increase retention and decrease turnover among nurses, according to the director of the New Jersey Hospital Association Institute for Quality and Patient Safety. The NJHA is sponsoring the initiative with a $732,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Their goal is to increase the amount of time nurses spend providing direct patient care and investigate ways to keep our more experienced nurses in the work force longer, while helping them to maintain their enthusiasm and passion caring for others.

An honorable goal, we should all strive to achieve. Allowing nurses to give more attentive patient care, is the best retention tool.

To learn how I can help you recruit and retain your nurses, contact me.

Shortages of healthcare professionals have compromised access to care in their areas, some CEOs report. Forty-six percent said access to care has been compromised by physician shortages, and eight percent said access has been compromised by nurse shortages. This may not seem like a big number, until one realizes that 8 out o f 100 people do not get the care they need because of the nursing shortage. This is unacceptable.

Last year nearly 120,000 potential nursing students were turned away in the United States. Join your community in finding ways to end the nursing shortage so everyone can receive the care they need.

As an expert in nurse recruitment and retention, I’m constantly researching and learning more on these issues. This conference was superb, a plethora of information!

I was eager to learn more about employee partnering to increase dedication and retention. Dedicated staff stay longer, reducing turnover. Dedicated staff deliver better patient care.

Based on data from hospitals across the country, instead of cutting staff to curtail costs, now is the time to create lasting partnerships with employees. Emotionally engaged employees are more likely to stay.

To learn more about how to engage your nurses and retain them, contact me. I can help.

Experts agree this trend will continue. And the good news is, health care jobs can’t be outsourced like those in manufacturing or other fields. Those in the health care field are going to be jobs that stay in the United States and add to the economy.

In my Each One Reach One Nurse initiative, I remind nurses to advocate nursing as a great career. Even though some places have temporary hiring freezes, the nursing shortage still exists. All of us nurses need to be forward thinkers and help to end the shortage of tomorrow by helping to recruit and retain nurses today.

I’ve got lots of simple way to do that, please contact me.

Mentoring new nurses is one of the key strategies in my Each One Reach One Nurse initiative. 20% of first year nurses quit! With the nursing shortage facing this nation, we cannot afford that. Mentoring a new nurse is a great investment.

I’ve done a lot of research about for my new keynote, What is This Generation Coming To? Coping with Generational Differences in the Workplace. Experts know that the “young” millennial require more attention the first year on the job, yet they are eager to learn and grow as a nurse and as a person. Giving them proper mentoring results in a long term, committed employee, one eligible for the Novice to Expert award.

If you don’t have an effective mentoring program for your new nurses, create one soon to help retain your nurses. To learn more ways to recruit and retain your nurses, contact me

Considering that 20% of first year nurses quit, we need to retain nurses by serving as role models and mentors for them. Contrary to many assumptions, the “millennial” generation is eager to learn from us; they are looking for role models.

As a nurse motivational speaker, I remind nurses that we are always role modeling, whether we want to or not. When we role model compassionate, positive, comprehensive care, we are teaching.  Who are your facility’s role models? Are you a good role model?

To learn more of my nurse recruitment and retention stategies, contact me.