Customized Programs Offer Key Skills for Nurses, CNOs and Other Healthcare Professionals
Workforce shortages continue to challenge the healthcare industry -- without any end in sight. Several factors are prompting these issues, most notably the so-called "silver tsunami" that will see the ranks of America's older population – the greatest users of healthcare services – almost double over the next several decades.
This demographic phenomenon is coupled with a wave of retirements among older clinicians and a growing gap in the number of experienced and specialized healthcare professionals – making workforce shortages even worse.
Recognizing that a multifaceted approach to solving workforce shortages is necessary, AMN Healthcare, the nation's leading healthcare staffing and workforce solutions company, has developed The Center for the Advancement of Healthcare Professionals. The Center provides customized education and training to develop the specialty-care and experienced nurses and other healthcare professionals and leaders, who are needed for organizations to thrive in this rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.
The Center's education programs span many job categories, ranging from unit nurses to directors, managers and charge nurses. The wide variety of education and training available through The Center may be appealing to organizations with limited education departments.
The Center's Three Major Areas of Focus
Transition-to-Practice Program Provides Hands-on, Individualized Training
This program provides specialized training through customized residency and fellowship programs to help organizations build and retain their healthcare workforce. Working in coordination with the healthcare organization, The Center creates and manages all aspects of the programs, from recruitment to customizing curriculum in order to meet the organization's specific needs.
These programs are geared to bringing recent nursing graduates into the workforce, so that they can handle the high-pressure world of acute patient care. Each participant receives hands-on, individualized attention, starting with residency, and continuing through certification.
In one recent Transition-to-Practice partnership, AMN Healthcare partnered with New York-Presbyterian Hospital (NYP) and another staffing vendor to deliver a training course for 19 new nursing graduates. After an initial two-week classroom orientation, the nurses worked on their assigned medical-surgical units under the watchful eye of expert nurse preceptors who focused on helping the new nurses enhance their clinical judgment and competencies with the overall goal of improving patient care and safety.
Following program completion, both participants and the hospital's nursing leaders expressed satisfaction and program graduates reported feeling much more confident and prepared to hit the ground running – both within the practice of nursing and their specialty.
NYP also realized significant cost savings through the utilization of the newly trained nurses who could cover various shifts at a lower hourly cost than overtime pay for existing staff. At three month's post-implementation, NYP reported a savings of about $21,000 per month from utilizing the 19 new graduates rather than overtime pay. Projecting out for a year, the hospital estimated a savings of $273,000. NYP continues to run the program twice annually.
Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Academy Prepares Critical Nurse Leaders
The Center's CNO Academy recognizes the critical role that Chief Nursing Officers fulfill in shaping patient care and nurse staffing.
Conducted as a three-day retreat, the CNO Academy helps early career CNOs, or RNs aspiring to advance to leadership roles, develop their leadership and relationship-building skills. Participants are presented with numerous case studies, role modeling, guided discussions about problem management, and instruction on how to effectively lead in the healthcare environment.
Attendees gain actionable insights and proven strategies to help solve the unique challenges facing today's nurse executives.
The next CNO Academy is scheduled March 15-18, 2017 in Dallas, TX. Register at http://www.cvent.com/events/cno-academy-spring-2017/event-summary-8b709daa668448439a56ee3b6bfb7050.aspx Registration must be complete by February 27, 2017.
Upon completion, each participant will be given three hours of advising and 21.5 contact hours.
Center Research Sheds Light on Industry Issues
AMN Healthcare conducts surveys exploring major healthcare workforce issues in order to raise awareness and better understand the challenges facing healthcare organizations today.
Recent surveys examined such issues as the utilization of predictive analytics in nurse scheduling and staffing; the emergence of new clinical job roles in light of healthcare industry transformation, and nurse's views on retirement, education and careers.
The Center for the Advancement of Healthcare Professionals will continue these and other studies as support for healthcare organizations to deliver outstanding patient care.
READ MORE
CNO Academy — Leadership Development
Transition to Practice Programs for Professional Development in Healthcare
The Center: Building the New Healthcare Workforce
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