Navigating the health care staffing crisis: Strategies for success

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The staffing shortage in health care is no surprise to anyone, much less those working in the industry. The flight out of health care started during the COVID-19 pandemic, reached peak levels in 2022, and does not seem to be slowing down fast enough. Although the extent of the shortage depends on the location, position and specialty, nearly everyone in health care is feeling the pinch of high turnover and unfilled roles. With these strategies, physicians, practice managers and health care executives can discover ways to minimize the effects of the shortage.

Understand how the shortage affects you

Garrett Norman
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Before creating plans to prevent staffing shortages at a hospital or clinic, health care executives and managers should understand how the shortages affect them directly. For example, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing estimates that the United States will have a shortage of nearly 80,000 registered nurses in 2025. It anticipates a shortfall of more than 25% for Washington, but other states may face a shortage of less than 10%. The American Hospital Association argues that the worst impact comes from a shortage of nurse assistants, while several physician specialties may have a surplus in the next few years.

Automate repetitive tasks

To minimize the impact of staffing shortages, especially in smaller clinics or hospitals, automation is key. Even a small clinic may spend hours per week scheduling or managing appointments, contacting patients to remind them of appointments, tracking assessments during appointments and doing other tasks. Tools exist to automate many of these responsibilities, ensuring a higher degree of accuracy and ideal timing. By integrating these tools with best practices in health care recordkeeping, practices can increase the quality of their records, improve patient attendance rates and reduce repetitive tasks for overworked staff.

Utilize technology for efficient appointments

Serving a larger number of patients is a critical goal of a limited number of physicians, especially those with larger overhead costs and higher patient needs. This goal can create excessive stress on nurses, physicians, assistants and other staff, but technology can help. Telehealth appointments can reduce the time staff members and assistants spend gathering basic information from patients, leaving more time for a physician to discuss each patient’s concerns directly. For acute care clinics and departments, the use of tele-triage can help patients and physicians determine the best route for care. This use of technology can decrease overcrowding and long wait times in emergency rooms.

Focus on retention and recognition

If hiring a new assistant, nurse or physician is not going to get much easier over time, organizations should focus on retention. McKinsey & Company reported that resignations among health care workers had risen by 150% from the beginning of the pandemic, up to 600,000 trained professionals per month. Although competitive pay, flexible hours and increased benefits are key elements of any staff retention, clinics and hospitals should also look at recognition. Health care professionals look for roles that allow them to perform at the top of their training, with recognition for their contributions to patient outcomes and the organization.

Offer flexible schedules

Health care organizations cannot guarantee that they will be able to exclusively hire medical staff, even nurses and physicians. This situation emphasizes the importance of providing in-demand advantages like flexible schedules to recruit a larger pool of candidates.

The current dynamic running through the industry highlights the effects of long-term stress and burnout on the careers of assistants, nurses and physicians. To mitigate these problems, many trained and certified health care professionals look for part-time and even per diem roles. These options allow health care workers to maintain some degree of control over their schedules and the amount of time they spend working for a single organization.

Provide professional development opportunities

Like any other long-term career path, physicians, nurses and assistants often expect opportunities to stretch their skills, grow in their positions and advance over time. Professionals in these fields are usually ambitious and self-driven, but the rigors of their roles may make it difficult for them to find the time and energy to pursue additional work off the clock. Health care organizations can increase incentives to recruit and retain by creating a robust program of professional development. Providing financial aid and other motivations for professionals to seek additional credentials or training can increase the quality of care at the organization while maintaining a key benefit for assistants, nurses and physicians.

Consider temporary staffing options

Overcoming the health care staffing shortage will not happen overnight, leaving many clinics and hospitals with pressing staffing needs right now. In regions with a heavy shortage, administrators may need to look farther afield to find trained professionals. Fortunately, organizations can find physicians, nurses and assistants who are willing to travel and offer their services under short-term contracts. Hiring for medical surgical travel nursing jobs and other roles can help organizations meet acute staffing concerns without compromising patient care.

The health care staffing shortage has created a crisis in some areas, with organizations unable to find sufficient assistants, nurses or physicians to meet critical patient care needs. By following these strategies, clinics and hospitals can find potential solutions to their staffing problems.

Garrett Norman is vice president of operations at SkyBridge Healthcare. With more than a decade of experience in the staffing and recruiting industry, he has developed a passion for building successful teams, facilitating connections between health care clients and candidates, and driving revenue growth at SkyBridge Healthcare.