Dr. Eboni Green
May 30, 2021
The pandemic has highlighted the important role caregivers play in the world’s healthcare infrastructure and in the daily lives of the individuals they serve. There is certainly demand for caregivers to care for seniors, the chronically ill, and individuals with special needs. Yet, for some organizations identifying qualified candidates proves to be an insurmountable challenge.
If your organization provides caregiving services and you are facing challenges with recruiting and retaining qualified caregivers, there are important questions that you must consider if you want to address this issue. First, do you currently have the right talent? If not, what are some ways to boost morale and essential job skills? Second, are you drawing in enough talent relevant to the needs of your organization? If the answer is no, what can be done to attract skilled caregivers? Finally, are you hiring the right talent? What are desirable qualities of your new caregivers? Are they paid adequately and is your work culture desirable?
Let us delve into each of these questions carefully.
If you are operating a successful organization, you clearly understand the importance of treating your current employees well. This involves not only ensuring your employees have the training and equipment to successfully perform their jobs, but that they use the resources provided to meet the needs of their clients.
Are your employees loyal to the organization or are you experiencing challenges with turnover? If the turnover is high, you must ask yourself why. Another consideration is industry turnover rates, specifically turnover among your competitors? After all, some industries — healthcare, social work, mental health, and others — traditionally have a high burnout rate. There are actions that can be undertaken to minimize turnover that results from burnout.
Also, is your current talent meeting your expectations? If not, ask yourself — and if appropriate, your employees — why. Are they not trained properly? Do your caregivers feel valued? Or do they feel that your organization treats them inadequately? If the answer to these questions is no, then there is an opportunity to make improvements so that you can attract the right talent.
While there are many jobs where the supply of workers exceeds the demand, caregiving is not one of those jobs. Therefore, you more than likely will not have to worry about having too many caregivers unless revenue does not meet organizational demands; that is a separate issue. You will, however, need to pay special attention to ensure that you have adequate numbers of caregivers to meet the needs of your clients. While revenue can result in limitations, inadequate staffing can result in a shortage of your ability to provide services, and that can lead to a crisis.
Finally, are you hiring the right talent? Do the individuals you hire reflect the organizational culture? Or do they negatively disrupt the organizational mission and vision? If the latter is the case, is imperative to determine how your organization might better attract and screen applicants?
While there is a shortage of caregivers, you can use platforms that specialize in recruiting for senior care jobs. You will also want to consider using a combination of resources to recruit your next generation of talent. For example, are you reaching out to new high school graduates looking for a career? Are you being proactive in your search for talent? Or are you simply reacting when you have an immediate need?
Documenting your answers to the aforementioned questions and then taking appropriate action is important so that you can attract the right talent for your organization.
