Every healthcare leader today knows that burnout and employee retention challenges are a critical challenge. What are some practical ways to reduce this risk and keep your team engaged?
Build an Inclusive Workplace Culture
Findings from one Gallup poll suggest high levels of disengagement with 50% of workers reporting feelings of stress and 60% of them remaining emotionally detached from the workplace. Inclusivity begins from day one of on-boarding by forging strong connections with one’s peers. Healthcare organizations must create a workforce culture, firmly rooted in inclusivity, where everyone feels included and no one feels alone. Coping with burnout is stressful, and is even worse when you have to do it all alone. This is where healthcare leadership needs to connect on a daily basis with each employee to assure them that they are not alone, and build a workplace environment where they feel comfortable sharing anything.
The solution: initiate conversations frequently with your fellow employees. Healthcare leaders must take the initiative so that there are more avenues for communication between care professionals in case they are suffering from burnout. Letting them know that they are not alone, and that help is just a message away, will make it less likely for them to quit an organization. When workers know they have their supervisor’s support and all the support they need from the organization, they can take better care of themselves.
Incorporate Technology to Simplify Workflows
The use of mobile technology has expanded to almost every corner of the world. People are continuously texting, connecting through social media, organizing their daily schedules and much more. Texting on the job has become more of a necessity. Therefore, care operators must invest in secure healthcare messaging apps. Healthcare messaging apps like Hucu.ai make it easier for medical workers to navigate through hectic workflows, by having separate personal and professional chats. This is a great boost to staff efficiency as they are no longer caught up in confusing personal and professional text messaging threads, feeling more confident in their responses and overall responsibilities.
With burnout on the rise in the care community, we need more communication tools that simplify provider workflows and reduce administrative burdens. Staffing shortages are at an all-time high in healthcare facilities and so, burnout has exacerbated an existing crisis, harming both the worker and the organization they are a part of. One report from the National Academy of Medicine found burnout being common among 54% of nurses and physicians, making the healthcare setting the perfect breeding ground for burnout. However, the right technology is a huge benefit and when implemented properly across facilities ensures staff feel supported in their challenging roles. Communication technology presents the healthcare sector with an incredible opportunity to reduce burnout among care workers. Better communication between staff members increases team collaboration, reduces inter-personal conflict and lowers stress among them.
Have Open Means of Communication
Communication connects us with each other, and is what eventually determines whether an employee chooses to stay or leave an organization. Healthy conversations between teams, regularly checking in with them to see if they’re doing okay keeps them engaged and healthy.
Constant supportive communication is key for lowering burnout and improving staff retention among care teams. Oftentimes, feelings of disconnectedness at work push employees to the verge of quitting their jobs altogether. Proper communication within an organization can tilt their decision in favor of wanting to work somewhere, rather than leaving the place.
Employees today look for open communication with their employers, instant feedback from managers and clarity in terms of what is expected of them. This is the perfect avenue for helping health organizations streamline their internal communication workflows with instant messaging apps such as Hucu.ai. An effective communication system within an organization helps build trust between employees and makes them more engaged in their daily activities. Open communication between staff and managers helps them to do their jobs well supported by constant feedback from them. This increases staff engagement, builds culture, and provides the perfect context for interaction over common workplace struggles.
Give Employees Meaningful Recognition
Burnout can be easily prevented, with positive recognition from peers and management. This will make them satisfied, happier and more productive in their roles. In case they are not given proper recognition, they will feel demotivated and detached from all the efforts they put in to complete a task. This can lead to negative feelings, induce stress and make burnout more likely. Oftentimes, case managers or other care workers forget to thank each other for their efforts, and while that may seem small, the culmination of such disregard can prove serious.
Research strongly suggests that burnout is interlinked with lack of employee recognition. With timely recognition, employees feel they are seen and valued. Recognition will help build a feeling of belonging in your organization. When you celebrate health workers or even say a simple and heartfelt thank you, all this will put a smile on their faces and make them less stressed. They will have a much higher regard for their team members and will value them even more. Authentic recognition is a powerful strategy in the prevention of burnout.
Establish Boundaries in the Workspace
Building trust in the workspace is key for lowering turnover rates. The right technology can help with this. Healthcare professionals must establish boundaries between what is personal and that which is professional. Care facilities should implement secure HIPAA compliant texting apps like Hucu.ai for better care coordination. A healthy work-life balance is essential and can lower burnout among medical workers by improving their physical & mental well-being. Better time management can also help care workers in achieving a positive work-life balance, by prioritizing high value tasks and leaving out time for hobbies, exercise or self-care.
Healthcare workers work in challenging settings, oftentimes requiring them to be on call 24/7. Therefore, they should separate personal time with family and friends, from work-related chats and discussions. This will make them more productive in managing their workflows, and their time, and will reduce their stress levels in managing both personal and professional relationships at the same time. With ease in care workflows, burnout is less likely, as staff feel they are more in control of their work and how they spend their time.
Looking to reduce burnout at your care facility?
Hucu.ai is an innovative healthcare communication platform that streamlines communication workflows between medical professionals, saves them 1-2 hours in a typical day, and makes their jobs much easier. Schedule a demo to learn more about us!
Sources
How to talk about burnout with your teams
Leveraging Technology to Reduce Burnout and Improve Staff Experience
Better communication can keep employees from leaving. Here’s how.
