Student Strategies Makes the Grade
- Mid-February 2003
The Niagara Health System has launched 'Student Strategies', part of a comprehensive plan designed to fill NHS nursing vacancies - with the added benefit of opening doors to rewarding career options for Niagara's youth.
The plan focuses on three areas:
- Enhancing skills for NHS registered nurses (RNs), to facilitate their transfer into high-skill, high-demand areas
- Recruiting nursing students from facilities across Canada and the US, and converting them into permanent NHS staff
- Guiding interested local youth (students from Gr. 7-12) into areas of opportunity in nursing and other health professions.
"The worldwide shortage of nurses has resulted in heavy workloads and significant amounts of overtime for nurses everywhere, including the NHS" said Bunny Alexander, RN and senior consultant, organizational development for the NHS.
"This unpleasant reality is not unique to the Niagara Health System, but it is crucial for us to do our part locally to address the situation. The need for nurses will only increase as our population both grows and ages and many older nurses retire. The up side is that the present shortage provides interested youth with exciting, rewarding career options."
Skills Enhancement
To immediately address nursing shortages in the high-skill area of critical care, the NHS has committed to a new skills enhancement program that will see existing nurses transfer into higher-demand jobs within a few months. On February 3, 2003, 15 NHS RNs began to complete the critical care nursing certificate program--a partnership between the Ontario Nurses Association, the NHS and Niagara College. Once trained, these RNs will be available to fill vacancies in the NHS's emergency and ICU areas, which will help alleviate workload pressures on the current staff of these departments.
"The NHS has committed to paying tuition, books, and a full salary while our RNs complete the 11-week program," explained Alexander. "Whereas many people may wish to upgrade but not be able manage time off work or night school, this program allows our RNs to concentrate fully on their studies and move straight into their desired new positions. It's positive for the RNs, it's positive for the health system and it's positive for our patients."
Converting Students into Staff
To answer the longer-term need for a continuing influx of nurses throughout the health system, Student Strategies puts into place several innovative ways for the NHS to become a preferred learning environment for health care students on placement from facilities across Canada and the US—and to convert interested, suitable graduates into permanent NHS staff.
"Our goal is to almost double the number of students at NHS sites over the next three years—from 535 in 2003 to 1000 in 2006," said Alexander. "We want to develop a relationship with every college and University in Canada that offers a nurse training program, and to offer student placements in every department at every NHS site. The NHS has also committed to going the extra mile to provide nurse preceptors to work one-on-one with all nursing students during the final phase of their program," Alexander said.
"Ensuring positive learning experiences will be key to the success of this program," Alexander advised. "Having the students here is good for patients and staff, but recruiting them upon graduation is our ultimate goal."
To that end, during March 2003, health program directors at each NHS site will meet personally with at least 58 graduating RNs and RPNs presently on placement at NHS sites, to invite them to apply for one of the NHS's current vacancies.
Opening Doors for Youth
Student Strategies is designed to encourage our region's young people to seriously consider careers in health care, as well as to provide opportunities for interested youth to experience the healthcare environment first-hand.
"Careers in health care offer tremendous opportunity for today's youth," said Debbie Sevenpifer, Interim President and CEO of the Niagara Health System. "At the NHS alone, we presently have numerous vacancies for Registered Nurses (RNs), Registered Practical Nurses (RPNs) and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists, pharmacists and lab technologists.
Student Strategies will enable NHS employees who are highly satisfied with their careers to be role models for youth. In 2003, RNs will have the opportunity to participate in high school career conferences sponsored by the Business Education Council and take part in the Teen Esteem - a program that brings professionals face-to-face with grade seven and eight girls to provide them with information on the importance of career choices and the opportunities available. In addition, the NHS will continue to provide placement opportunities for Gr. 11 and 12 co-op students; and to offer an informative, hands-on "Take Our Kids to Work Day" annually.
The NHS, in collaboration with the Niagara Training and Adjustment Board, will also release a comprehensive Health Care Career Catalog, to be made available to youth both online and in hard copy through high school guidance departments by March 31, 2003.
The NHS's student strategy is part of a comprehensive nurse recruitment and retention plan currently underway at the Niagara Health System.