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Task force established
to
resolve healthcare shortages
 Hospitals
in North Carolina are suffering from what many might say is
a crisis situation. The shortage of nurses is no different
than any other state in the country. And just like every other
state, North Carolina is working toward a goal - finding new
and innovative ways to make healthcare an appealing field.
"Like
everywhere else, we have created a land of opportunity where
choices for young women are much broader now than they were
15 to 20 years ago," explains Don Dalton, spokesman for the
North Carolina Hospital Association (NCHA). Many nurses currently
in the work force are reaching retirement age, and today there
are more places for nurses to work without having to deal
with long hours and night shifts.
Dalton
points out that some of the markets are more affected by the
shortage than others. "We are having a more difficult time
solving the problem in rural markets because there are less
people there," he says. However, hospitals have put a number
of different strategies in place to attract and retain people.
Sign-on bonuses, "finder's fees" for nurses who help the hospital
recruit other nurses, tuition reimbursement, pairing nurses
with mentors, job sharing and other flexible work arrangements
are just some of the methods being utilized. Some hospitals
are even developing their own task forces to look at ways
to address the shortage.
Fortunately,
more people are getting involved and are trying to find solutions
to the crisis. Recently, the Forsyth Medical Center Foundation
gave Winston-Salem University a $333,000 grant to study the
nursing shortage and recommend ways to recruit and retain
nursing students. The money will be used to provide a research
position in the school of health sciences.
The
North Carolina Center for Nursing (NCCN) has also been working
hard to increase the number of enrollees in the state's nursing
programs. One initiative is a five-day developmental program
for nurses around the state called the Institute for Nursing
Excellence. NCCN also awards grants to healthcare agencies
to help with retention.
Dalton
stresses that nursing isn't the only critical area of concern.
There has been an increasing demand for everything from dietary
employees to radiology technicians and lab technicians. Also,
the need for pharmacists in North Carolina is huge. "Hospitals
have been greatly challenged here by the boom in the retail
pharmacy market," he says.
Although
the effort has been made to change the healthcare dilemma
in the state, much more has to be done. "We are constantly
at work trying to improve the lines of communication," Dalton
says. "We have had discussions with the state department of
education focusing on how we can encourage young people and
show them the opportunities that are available."
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