NUR 514 Review the American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA) website and discuss the resources that you found there

We have indeed lost a lot of nurses and other healthcare workers during the pandemic. Some of them got sick and did not want to return to direct patient care nursing, some took a break from nursing, and many we lost because travel nursing offered 2 to 3 times the pay of a regular, non-travel nurse. My role as an area team lead does not require direct care but during those times, I literally had to cover 4 to 5 nursing shifts per week. As the pandemic stabilized, the nurses and other healthcare workers that left and joined other companies began to come back. We are now appropriately staffed, with occasional hiccups and we survived the crisis together. I observed that the employees we retained have created a better culture in the facility. One that cares for one another as well as the patients. They also developed the initiative to resolve issues as they come, especially in terms of staffing. They would find coverage among themselves and then come up to me with the solution. Some of my patient care technicians are currently in the nursing program and it has created a domino effect as other technicians are also coming to me with their interest in registering for the nursing tuition reimbursement program. The program itself, aside from tuition reimbursement, gives the staff the opportunity to study by allowing them a flexible schedule while they are in the program but retaining their full-time status. They also get incremental study-related wage increases as they advance through the program as well as retention bonuses. After they graduate and pending NCLEX, they get into a nursing internship program as well which provides an additional bonus.

It is hard to compete with salaries as nurses tend to jump from one employer to the next for this reason. However, I believe that the organizational culture and overall job satisfaction and stability make a difference. Organizations should also need to ensure they have a process of conducting periodic market compensation analyses to remain competitive in terms of salaries.

Nurse retention is a pressing global concern, compromising the healthcare system and patient care. Whether it’s lack of support or poor resilience, or inadequate skills development, the organization has the responsibility to address this issues to retain good practitioners (Collard et al., 2020). Organizations are finding ways to increase nurse retention by providing a healthier work environment, focusing on empowering nurses, promoting engagement, and giving nurses organizational initiatives related to work-life balance, staffing, and scheduling, which in turn promotes job satisfaction. Supportive practice environment and improved job satisfaction will promote retention and consequently, cost reduction (Morris, 2019).

References:

Collard S., Scammell, J., & Tee, S. (2020). Closing the gap on nurse retention: A scoping review of implications for undergraduate education. Nurse Education Today, 84 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2019.104253.

Morris, E. (2019). Increasing nurse retention. American Journal of Nursing, 119(8),10 https://doi.org/ 10.1097/01.NAJ.0000577344.79136.9b

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Retention of nursing staff is a significant problem across healthcare. “From February 2020 to September 2021, 18% of healthcare workers quit their jobs. Additionally, 12% have been laid off and 19% thought about leaving their job” (Morris, 2022, para. 2). The stressful work environment exacerbated by the pandemic has caused some of the most dedicated nurses to leave bedside nursing. My belief is that those who entered the field motivated by the lifestyle, job availability or pay that nursing offers, will likely “burn out” quickly if not motivated by a deep desire and “calling” to care for others in the most difficult of situations. I’ve often stated that if you go into nursing only for the money, it will never be enough.

My current organization offered a retention bonus to all nurses still employed by the hospital who have been there more than 1 year. This was paid to full time, part time and per diem nurses. My unit has also offered more part time positions than it previously had to accommodate those nurses who felt like they couldn’t keep up full time employment. I believe that both of these offerings have been appreciated by nursing staff and have helped to improve retention.

References:

Morris, G., 2022, May 6. How to support nurses and raise nurse retention rates.

Nursejournal.org. https://nursejournal.org/articles/how-to-support-nurses-considering-resigning/

Nurse retention has been an ongoing issue within my healthcare organization. Very little efforts have been focused on existing nurses, but instead incentives for traveling nurses and new hires have been added. For obvious reasons, this has not gone over well. Due to extreme staffing issues during the Covid-19 pandemic, the organization has been offering double pay for extra shifts worked. According to the organization, this is to retain staff. However, most nurses within the organization agree that this does not help to retain staff.

Nursing is an in-demand field of work, but retention has been alarmingly high. In recent years, the turnover rate of nurse’s ranges from 8.8% to 37% (Regis College, 2021). Additionally, new hire turnover rate ranges from 28.8% to 49.6%. Poor nurse retention leads to decreased quality of care, staffing shortages, and overall burnout of team members. Often times, students are seeking a profession in nursing simply due to job stability. While this may seem appealing at first, this often leads to increased burnout and turnover. Nursing is a profession that be pursued as a passion, not because of job stability or salary.

References

Regis College. (2021). How can leaders in nursing improve nurse retention rates. https://online.regiscollege.edu/blog/how-can-leaders-in-nursing-improve-nurse-retention-rates/

How does your organization address nurse retention?

My current organization values nurse retention as a key issue that impacts patient outcomes. Appropriate leadership and staffing levels have been crucial in eliminating turnovers. The organization also ensures that there is a favorable nurse-to-patient ratio to eliminate unnecessary burnout and de-motivation. Besides, an appropriate skill mix is a key factor in role allocation, ensuring increased satisfaction of nurses in their daily operations. Other factors meant to enhance nurse retention in the organization include fair compensation, rewards, proper recognition, and effective communication.

What does current (in past 5 years) literature identify in regards to nurse retention?

Maintaining health and well-being are the basic responsibilities of nurses. Nurse shortage or turnover can be a major crisis in healthcare services, particularly during pandemics. According to Alharbi et al. (2022), nurse turnover is linked to an unproductive working environment that always led to staff dissatisfaction. Thus, heightening retention rates requires employing motivational theories. Motivation is surrounded by five main needs that are referred to as a hierarchy of needs. By satisfying those needs, the organization could enhance the employee retention rate. Lockhart (2020) posits that improving the workplace environment can also positively affect staff satisfaction, burnout, and turnover. Therefore, improving orientation, eliminating unnecessary overtime, improving role transitions, and ensuring appropriate shift length enhance retention.

What impact on retention occurs if a student pursues nursing education only due to job stability and salary stability (e.g., not because of a “calling”)?

Students pursuing nurse education without passion and calling are likely to face dissatisfaction and have increased turnover. Nursing is a calling and necessitates the possession of critical ethical skills such as compassion, kindness, and empathy. Without such values, it is impossible to uphold satisfaction and optimum care outcomes.

What has your organization (or previous one if you have changed employers) done during the pandemic to keep nurses (not to lose them to traveling, burnout, etc.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major disruptor of nurse retention and contributes to increased burnout and related risks of higher nurse turnover. During the pandemic era, my organization increased nurses’ financial compensation to cover for increased shifts and the increased risk associated with their duties. Nurses also received critical vaccinations and sufficient personal protective equipment to safeguard them from contracting COVID. Finally, the organization focused on ensuring proper mental health for all front-line nurses, by presenting a strong support system and having on-site self-care measures such as break rooms.

References

Alharbi, F. S., Mustafa, Z., & Benoy, M. (2022). Nurses Turnover: Retention of the Staff. Open Journal of Nursing, 12(3), 199-219.

Lockhart, L. (2020). Strategies to reduce nursing turnover. Nursing Made Incredibly Easy, 18(2), 56.

This is an essential topic in the nursing profession and something I am currently working on for nurse retention in the ICU. Multiple studies and articles have been published over the last few years due to the pandemic and the nursing shortage. Overall, strategies to help with nurse retention include giving the nurses a chance and a venue to be heard, feeling valued at the organization, focusing on mental health, investing in staff, and developing leaders (Jean, 2022).

The pandemic created unimaginable hardships for my unit that we are still working towards recovering from today. Ways that my department and institution are combating retention is to focus on various ways to show staff they are valued and provide mental health resources. For example, the organization hired full-time psychologists for staff struggling with mental health, especially after the pandemic. We look for ways to make the staff feel valued by recognizing work through abstracts and publications. Other ways to recognize staff are through internal recognition award programs such as the daisy award and above and beyond. All of these initiatives have helped in keeping my staff turnover rate low in comparison to other ICUs. As a supervisor, it is important to take the time to be a compassionate leader during times of hardship and to find innovative ways to support staff.

Reference

Jean, J. (2022, January 11). 6 Proven Strategies From Nurse Execs to Combat the Nursing Shortage in 2022. NurseJournal. https://nursejournal.org/articles/proven-strategies-to-survive-the-nursing-shortage-2022/

American Nurses Informatics Association (ANIA)

The American nurses informatics association website offers a variety of information for the nursing informatics field. The website offers a variety of resources that includes information on nursing conferences that are held a number of times a year in which they discuss changes in the nursing profession and informatics area and how will it impact nursing and the public health, news and updates about the nursing profession, changes to policies, information on nursing informatics and anything that is relevant to the field and to the specific field of informatics, it provides nursing journals of up-to-date researches and discussions and changes to the field and any information that would help nurses in the informatics sector, it offered membership for people to join and to stay abreast to all it changes and anything related to nursing and nursing informatics as well as other opportunities in the nursing field as well as opportunities to meet other nurses and other professionals within the informatics arena, it also offers networking events which is great for nurses to meet with other professionals in the healthcare field and another way for people to find opportunities to advance in the career of healthcare and nursing informatics as well as look for mentorship. The American nursing informatics association also offers professional resources for working professionals in the field as well as career building opportunities that help to educate healthcare workers and nurses and those within the informatic fields and how to climbed the healthcare field ladder or corporate ladder as well as prepare them for interviews and prepare them for on the field work. Lastly the website offers educational resources which is essential to the field of nursing. Continuing education is essential to a successful career in nursing and informatics the website offers educational resources that offer people the opportunity to renew their licenses and certifications. “Professional organizations and associations in nursing are critical for generating the energy, flow of ideas, and proactive work needed to maintain a healthy profession that advocates for the needs of its clients and nurses, and the trust of society” (Matthews, 2012).

The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing.

Networking Opportunities

The website offers opportunities and information on networking events for those in the nursing informatics profession and the nursing profession in general. The website offers an opportunity for people to meet other people within the field and an opportunity for them to connect, develop relationships, develop mentorships, and to connect for employment opportunities. It also provides individuals in the profession with opportunities to learn more about the profession to enhance their knowledge and skill sets which then in turn will help them apply to the career and help them to advance within their career. One of the most important things for anyone in the career is networking and building relationships with people and developing reports and relationships with individuals who would mentor you. Mentorship it’s very important for career advancement and navigating through the profession and the environment of that specific industry.

Reference:

Matthews, J. (2012). Role of Professional Organizations in Advocating for the Nursing Profession. The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. 17(3). DOI: 10.3912/OJIN.Vol17No01Man03

The American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA) has a few resources available to view. There was a preview video that was provided from the June 2022 Conference. In the video there is discussion on post-mortem and the need to identify all who are present and/or provided care. It does go into a small segment of the ANIA guide and toolkit and how to utilize when working with electronic health records in planned and unplanned downtime events.

Other resources found within ANIA is access to the Journal of Informatics Nursing, networking, an online/job career forum and opportunities and professional resources. These professional resources include ANIA’s annual conference, webinars, journal and research. This is a great resource for nurses who specialize in nursing informatics.

Reference

American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA). (2021). The ANIA Guide and Toolkit: Nursing downtime preparedness from SAFER guides to practice. The ANIA Guide and Toolkit: Nursing Downtime Preparedness from SAFER Guides to Practice

NUR 514 Review the American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA) website and discuss the resources that you found there