De Vore Recruiting Blog

Nursing professionals, including the 3 million registered nurses in the U.S., are working in one of the most demanding and stressful industries. As caregivers working on the front line providing healing and comfort to patients, the nurses’ own mental and physical states should be of utmost importance to employers.

Focusing on nurses’ wellness is important at this time, especially, as the nation faces a nursing shortage. The American Journal of Medical Quality forecasts the nursing shortage to increase by 2030, according to a 2012 report.

Part of the nursing shortage problem can be attributed to a large number of Baby Boomer nurses who will be retiring in the next few years. Also, there are a large number of registered nurses looking at retirement in the near future; 47 is the average age of a registered nurse today.

However, much of this forecasted shortage is coming from nursing burnout. A 2011 survey by the American Nurses Association cites overwork and stress as being the top health concerns for three out of four nurses. Demanding work schedules and insufficient staffing are contributing to nurses saying goodbye to the industry. Nurses are frequently found working 12-hour shifts over the course of three days. And studies show that nurses who work over eight-hour shifts are two-and-a-half times more likely to experience burnout.

Sometimes the reason nurses enter the field is the very reason they leave it. Those who are driven to help others, rather than enjoyment of the actual work, are more likely to become burnt out, according to a survey of over 700 registered nurses by University of Akron researchers.

Yet there are ways to reverse nursing burnout. While nobody can control the influx of sick patients and more complex work environments, factors within employers’ control include:

• Ensuring that nurses have a voice in the workforce and authority to implement changes.
• Providing learning to help them grow in their profession.
• Recognizing their efforts and vital role in health care.
• Encouraging mentors to help provide support when needed and guidance on the job.

Nurses, who see themselves as part of a collective family, need to take care of themselves and worry about each other. But employers also need to make sure nurses are cared for so that they can provide their knowledge and expertise to the best of their ability.

Fatigue and stress need to be minimized to retain and protect nurses. Studies have shown that nursing burnout directly affects how well patients are being taken care of, which can be costly for health care facilities.

Healthcare recruiter De Vore Recruiting is happy to be a part of this year’s 64th-annual California Association of Health Facilities (CAHF) Convention & Expo. The event runs Nov. 9 through 12.

Founded in 1950, CAHF is a nonprofit association and statewide organization supporting long-term care facilities, like skilled nursing facilities (SNF), sub-acute care facilities, intermediate care facilities (ICF), intermediate care facilities for persons with developmental disabilities (ICF/DD), institutes for mental health/special treatment programs (SNF/STP) and products and services providers. Specifically, CAHF is committed to improving the quality of long-term care in SNFs and community-based homes for people with developmental disabilities.

CAHF is a statewide nonprofit for California’s long-term care facilities that provide care for the elderly, frail, intellectually disabled and chronic mental illness sufferers. It also is the largest provider of continuing education for CA’s long-term care facilities.

This year’s event will feature approximately 270 booths and notable speakers. Attendees range from registered nurses (RN) and directors of nursing to facility managers and licensed vocational nurses (LVN).

De Vore Recruiting will be exhibiting at the event for the first time, despite having attended the event in previous years and engaging in numerous chapter events. It also is their first year being CAHF members. De Vore Recruiting specialists Alexis Lyman, Victoria Brahma and Sean De Vore will be on hand at the event. Sean De Vore encourages any attendees who may be interested in connecting with De Vore Recruiting at the event to contact him at sean@devorerecruiting.com

De Vore Recruiting will be answering questions and assisting with industry hiring needs. Attendees at the event also will be able to learn about regulatory issues, find new suppliers, network, examine new products, participate in educational programming and voice their opinions about issues that relate to the long-term care industry.

CAHF promotes long-term care enhancement at the local, regional and national levels. It also provides timely information regarding industry trends and developments.

To learn more about De Vore Recruiting and their healthcare recruiting services, call 877-411-4358 or visit theirwebsite. Sign up for the newsletter to learn about the latest developments in the healthcare industry

EVENT DETAILS

CAHF 64th-Annual Convention & Expo

When: Nov. 9-12, 2014

Where: Renaissance Palm Springs & Palm Springs Convention Center, 888 Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs, CA

Registration: Click here for online registration; Attendees and exhibitors contact Debbie Ross at (916) 432-5188 or dross@cahf.org

More info: (916) 441-6400, 1-800-347-5547, cahf.org, cahfconvention.com

De Vore Recruiting, a healthcare recruiter based in Sherman Oaks, will be one of 80 exhibitors at California Assisted Living Association’s (CALA) annual Fall Conference and Trade Show, running Oct. 27-29.

De Vore is one of the nation’s top healthcare recruiters, finding the best candidates for skilled nursing and hard-to-fill director-level positions across the US. As new CALA members this year, De Vore is excited to participate in the organization’s conference and trade show in Pomona. De Vore will be the only recruiting agency exhibiting at the trade show, according to company president Sean De Vore.

The healthcare recruiter is looking forward to being a valuable resource for assisted living facilities throughout California. Three De Vore recruiting specialists — Sean De Vore, Maria Paduano, Victoria Brahma — will be on hand at the trade show to assist with any recruiting needs or to answer questions regarding day-to-day operations and staffing at assisted living organizations.

De Vore will be providing candidate and client informational sheets accompanied by testimonials. There will be promotional products and a giveaway.

Sean De Vore is happy to be a part of an organization that places such a high value in its programming and provides its members with up-to-date information regarding new policies and legislation.

This year’s topics will include innovative care strategies and the latest news regarding new legislation. Attendees will take away best practices from individual sessions and learn about new products and services. It also functions as a large networking opportunity were professionals learn to provide the highest quality of care for their residents.

CALA, representing more than 500 assisted living communities, is the only association in the state that focuses solely on assisted living providers. The Sacramento-based organization seeks to improve assisted living for residents by offering leadership, advocacy and education to providers.

To learn more about De Vore Recruiting, call 877-411-4358. Sign up for their newsletter to stay abreast of the latest developments in the healthcare industry.

Experts in New Hampshire are especially concerned about their state’s future health care needs given a largely aging population that could potentially get sicker, according to a Concord Monitor article.

The cause for concern comes via data collected from the US Census Bureau and the newly released Hampshire Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, among other sources.

Obesity levels across the state are forecasted to rise from 25.6 percent, recorded in 2010, to between 33.9 and 43.4 percent by 2030. There will be increased rates of Alzheimer’s, cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease by 2030, as well.

MapNH Health, formed by New Hampshire Citizens Health Initiative, was created as a proactive measure to discuss and to raise awareness for future health care needs statewide.

Jeanne Ryer, director of NH Citizens Health Initiative, told the Concord Monitor that the state needs to ready itself for “a different health future.”

“Let’s not see this as a doom and gloom scenario – let’s talk about how we want our health future to look. We can get there. If we just sit and wait, it won’t be what we want.”

MapNH Health expects that demand for primary care will increase statewide within the next couple of decades. As a result, they suggest that the state should make efforts to recruit more primary care providers and bolster their network of medical professionals.

It also noted that more needs to be done to help seniors, especially those who cannot drive or who are not as mobile, stay in better contact with their doctors and get the medication they need, especially if they choose to age in place within their homes and communities.

That’s good news for nursing professionals who are looking to utilize their experience to help in-need areas.

De Vore is a nursing recruitment agency based in California but fills important nursing positions throughout the US. To learn more, click here.

What hospitals can do to attract, retain quality nurses

Hospitals are looking for the best health care professionals, especially when it comes to nursing employment, in order to provide optimal patient care. A technology-driven industry that also requires excellent interpersonal skills and intuitive, thoughtful bedside manner needs individuals with extensive training, education and experience.

And with more patients thanks to the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, and with a large number of Baby Boomer registered nurses (RN) ready to retire in the next few years, hospitals are looking for quality nursing employment to fill their current and anticipated needs.

But how do hospitals attract these dependable, composed and well-trained professionals? Nursing is extremely demanding, and burnout can easily happen. Holding onto good nurses means hospital management teams need to focus on the specific needs of its nurses. Here are a few ways they can do this:

• Provide career development services– Encourage your nursing staff to continue their medical education. Nurses who continue their education while working tend to feel more content and remain with employers whose values match their own.
• Give them a voice; let them know they are appreciated– Nurses, who can sometimes play second fiddle to doctors, want to be heard. They know how to improve patient care, as they work the front lines of the field. Nurses appreciate when they can easily talk to supervisors to voice their concerns. Listen to and implementing the suggestions of your nurses will help to empower your nursing staff as well as provide better patient care.
• Offer flexibility– Even though nursing is the most in-demand occupation in health care next to surgeons and doctors, it is a tasking and energy-sapping field. Providing flexible schedules allows nurses to get some rest in-between long shifts. It also lets nurses take continuing medical education courses, which is a benefit both to the nurse and hospital. Additionally, nurses with young, growing families at home appreciate more flexibility. Keeping nurses well-rested aids patient care, as well.

De Vore Recruiting is one of the nation’s top healthcare recruiters. Our mission is to find the most tech-savvy and ambitious nursing candidates for your health care facility. We do the heavy lifting for you, finding the best candidates who are usually currently employed. We use nurses’ references to gauge their worth ethic, dependability and their ability to deal with high-stress situations. We find RNs with real world experience and extensive training to help hospitals avoid high turnover and additional costs in the future.

If you are interested in having De Vore help you with your nursing employment needs, call us at 877-411-4358 to speak with one of our health care recruiters.

Patients often bond with their nurses. A day’s worth of care tends to outshine a few minutes spent with a doctor who walks into, and promptly out of, a hospital room. In fact, patients can get emotional if a certain nurse who has taken care of them for hours finishes her shift. (It is not abnormal for a nurse to stay on longer to continue providing care and comfort in such an instance.)

Traditionally, nurses are viewed as, and arguable are, the face of health care.

Yet nurses are usually not consulted by administrators when practices and policies regarding care optimization are changed, notes a recent Forbes article. But who better to learn how to improve quality and efficiency in the healthcare system than from the people who are working with hospital patients regularly?

Empowering nurses and giving them leadership roles aids patients and their recoveries, according to studies. The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) began a 16-month program in 2012. It provided innovation and leadership training to teams of staff nurses at 42 hospitals located in six states. The study empowered “bedside nurses as clinician leaders and change agents” to see if that would have any effect on patient care and hospital savings.

From the results of four teams (with two to complete their programs by year’s end), empowered nurses helped to decreased a patient’s hospital stay in intensive care units by a day. Nurses also knocked off one day of need for patients using a ventilator. And the amount of infections and complications in the intensive care unit were halved. And each team projected savings anywhere from $120,000 to $6 million. To learn more about how each team accomplished these results, or to implement some of their practices at your health care facility, read the full article and visit AACN.org.

“Studies confirm that empowered nurses provide the best patient care,” said AACN President Teri Lynn Kiss, who was quoted in the article.

De Vore, one of the nation’s top healthcare recruiters, looks for ambitious candidates to fill important nursing employment needs for healthcare facilities around the U.S. To submit your resume as a potential candidate for current or future job openings through De Vore, click here.  View the latest career opportunities through De Vore here. Feel free to call us at 877-411-4358 to talk to one of our health care recruiters.