“The Great Resignation” of 2021 has put immense stress on healthcare workers. In understaffed teams, employees face increasingly challenging situations, work longer hours and wear multiple hats. This can quickly break down a team’s ability to bounce back from rough shifts or difficult patients, snowballing into even more turnover. We have discussed the power of personal resiliency in our blog before, but how do you help your healthcare team find resiliency?

Create a Team Environment

Healthcare facilities are full of people, so it is easy to forget that many roles are often lonely. For example, cleaning staff usually works in small teams or alone. Night shift workers are also prone to long stretches of limited interaction. This creates roadblocks to building a shared sense of purpose that can guide people through challenging moments. For facilities operating 24-hours, it is tough to have all-staff meetings or social events. Things like social media groups, file sharing apps, or WhatsApp are great interactive ways for teams to communicate and receive information. Regularly hold team meetings that incorporate social interaction, not just company updates.

The Customer Isn’t Always Right

One of the most stressful parts of healthcare is dealing with unruly patients. While many healthcare facilities place importance on positive patient reviews to stay in business, it should not come at the cost of throwing an employee under the bus. Let your employees know that managers will back them up if a patient becomes disrespectful or rude. This emotionally equips them to better handle, and rebound from, difficult patients.

Use Overtime Carefully

As healthcare staffing struggles continue, teams will be working overtime until they can hire more hands. Make sure teams are equally taking on the extra work and management is keeping an eye out for burnout. Just because someone is a team player does not mean they can handle taking on an extra shift again.

Provide Mental Health Resources

If you can provide insurance that covers mental health care, great! Make sure employees are aware of their coverage and know how to find in-network providers. If it is not part of company insurance, locate and share free local resources. Here is a great place to start.

Encourage Physical Wellness

Studies show that mental health is closely tied to physical wellness. Encourage stationary roles to get up and take walks. Create wellness challenges to promote eating well, drinking water, and getting enough sleep. Be understanding when employees need to take a sick day.

Find Supportive Healthcare Leadership

In an industry with frequent ups and downs, the right leadership makes all the difference in a teams’ resiliency. Make sure your management staff is willing to contribute to a healthy work environment. Learn how our healthcare recruiters can help you find those leaders for your staff. Contact us today.