Evolving How the Work Gets Done

North Mississippi Health Services has been evolving our workforce through innovation and a teammate-centered view. At its core, this evolution is about engaging our teammates, supporting their wellbeing and putting them in a position to provide the best patient care.

Working in health care is a rewarding job but can be physically and emotionally taxing. Yet so many of our teammates remain committed to what they do because of their strong connection to our purpose. Over the years there has been a labor shortage in health care, including many clinical roles, nursing and support services. That shortage was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. To combat this, NMHS has redesigned our recruitment process and worked to build a pipeline of future workers across our organization.

In November of 2022, there were 11 million openings across the United States and only 6 million people to fill them. Those numbers haven’t changed much in the last 18 months. Job titles aside, we must solve this math problem before we can fill our pipeline.

One way we can build that pipeline is through institutional and community partnerships. This can look like generating interest by reaching out to high school students who are already in health care pathways. We are exploring scholarship opportunities, loan forgiveness and even recruiting in international markets to build those partnerships and get those students connected to us. Some of those tactics are long-term and some are short-term, but the bigger picture is this: how do we keep that pipeline consistently flowing without running into bottlenecks or other barriers?

Partnerships have been part of our plan for a long time, but our approach is becoming more targeted. For example, we are offering scholarships to nursing students in hopes that they will come work with us, experience our culture and then stay here with us long-term.

Most people think of doctors and nurses when they think of health care, but there are many other options. It is important to connect with junior high and high school students to educate them about the different opportunities available. It takes many roles to keep the health care system running smoothly for our patients.

Another innovative approach we are taking is an apprenticeship program. This program is unique because Itawamba Community College students are coming here not only to do clinicals, but also to work for us. We have an opportunity to grow them and teach them in the NMHS culture. Not only can these students be paid for the hours they work, but we are building a relationship with them that we hope will evolve into full-time employment.

We have also evolved how we recruit and place talent within the organization. Our talent acquisition is becoming more proactive, and we have revamped how we approach and work with candidates to make it more personal and efficient. We are much more focused on creating relationships with individuals who will then fill out an application and join our organization.

Building a pipeline of future health care workers is essential, but supporting our current team is just as important. Many jobs in health care are demanding, and the labor challenges have impacted those at the bedside. Supporting teammates who are working hard to deliver care to our patients is happening in many ways at NMHS, and we believe in letting our frontline teammates drive change. One of the ways we do that is by helping them remove hassle factors – things that don’t benefit the patient or the organization but get in the way while doing their job.

This process starts with a conversation between the front-line employee and leader about these hassle factors so we can act. Not only does removing hassle factors make their job easier, but it can also improve their mental well-being, their family life and other aspects of their life. When this is addressed, employees are more likely to stay with us, be engaged and positively impact the patient experience.

When we hire someone, we hope they will spend the rest of their career with us. We provide opportunities to advance within our system. We want to support and help our teammates grow from their early career all the way through their retirement. Over the last several years, we have implemented several programs to give individuals a clear path to growth and advancement.

It’s important for us to have a high-quality, engaged workforce. On our last engagement survey, 80% of employees said that they trust their manager. This shows that we have great engagement with our leadership, which is a powerful place to start when evolving our workforce.