Tennessee hospital chiefs huddle to address hiring crisis

Tennessee hospital chiefs huddled in Franklin this weekend, largely to focus on their shared hiring crisis. The staffing shortage has not eased even as the pandemic subsides, and many hospital leaders are beginning to get used to high turnover.

Hospitals — like many institutions — have generally rewarded longevity. So the exodus during the COVID pandemic has thrown off many systems.

In Fayetteville, near the Alabama border, Mary Beth Seals leads the Lincoln Health System and says she’s now willing to hire people even if they have a string of one-year jobs on their resume. And she acknowledges during orientation that she wants them to make the most of their time there — even if it’s limited.

“Even though they’re working at a small rural hospital, we do have a lot of young applicants,” she says. “I may tell them, ‘You may be starting as a tech, but you aspire to something greater.’ We want to help them get there.”

At their annual conference, the Tennessee Hospital Association flew in human resources guru Steve Cadigan, the author of “WorkQuake” who is credited with greatly expanding LinkedIn. He’s been coaching hospital executives around the country and says it may be time to rethink the demands of nearly every job within a hospital — or else the exodus is likely to continue. He notes that nearly every benefit in a hospital is meant to reward tenure, whereas most employees are seeking places where they can grow and be given flexibility.

But he also says hospitals can’t blame nurses or other staff for taking lucrative travel positions, as many have. But those people can become ambassadors for the hospital if they’re treated well as they leave. And maybe that will bring them back one day.

“I think we’re at a moment where we should focus maybe something bigger than just retaining people,” Cadigan says. “Maybe it’s about retaining relationships. Maybe that’s bigger. Maybe that’s more long term to our benefit.”