Keeping the lines of communication open is an integral part of good staff management. Streamlining communications can go a long way to help your staff feel good about their work. In doing so, you can boost morale and the overall mood of employees at your senior living organization.
A study from RNnetwork, found that “70% of nurses reported feeling burnt out, and half have considered leaving the industry. Nursing is a demanding occupation – a career as a nursing professional is often associated with long hours and high stress. Low nurse morale not only has a negative impact on the overall culture of a care facility or hospital, but it can also have severe financial implications for an institution. Nurse dissatisfaction is directly related to a high turnover rate.”
Creating an environment which promotes strong employee morale is not only a good for your staff its good for your business; it creates a space where people want to come to work and do so with a positive outlook, and a proactive approach.
With retention rates still an ongoing issue for many senior living facilities, here are a few ways that automated communication can save time while also increasing morale.
Utilize Communication Software to Quickly Fill Shifts
The prospect of being short staffed puts an undue burden on the staff and can lead to anxiety and low morale. Callouts happen and sometimes finding another employee to cover the shift may seem like a massive task. This doesn’t have to be the case. Having the ease of filling a shift via automated bi-directional messaging means fewer calls and less scrambling. This also allows you to be proactive rather than reactive increasing the likelihood of a filling the open shift and operating with a full roster. When your shifts are fully staffed your team has adequate time to perform the duties of their role leading to a stronger sense of satisfaction. When employees feel good about where they work, they’re going to be more inclined to cover a shift for a coworker.
Create a Sense of Community with Communication
Creating a positive culture and a sense of community is one of the most valuable investments a senior care organization can make to increase moral and satisfaction among staff. Creating recognition programs, celebrating career and personal milestones and accomplishments, and establishing team building events are just a handful of ways to foster a sense of community. While communicating information about these initiatives can be time consuming there is great value there. Consider automating this communication to allow you to save time while increasing the frequency of touch points. Communication software can take your efforts one step further by allowing for personalization of messaging and ensuring data integrity.
Overshare
An engaged employee is a happy employee. Keeping staff up-to-date and informed of your organizational goals and initiatives can help them feel like they matter, which in turn boosts morale. Regular and frequent communication can also ease angst and build trust among your staff by making them feel like the channels of communication are open and concerns can be freely and openly shared. Utilizing communication technology allows you to share information efficiently and effectively in the format your staff prefers; whether that’s by email, text, or phone call. It can also help you to send twice the amount of communication you normally would in a fraction of the time.
If you are considering investing in communication technology to support your employee engagement efforts VoiceFriend can help. VoiceFriend, a HIPAA compliant, cloud-based communication platform designed for organizations that care for seniors, is a low-cost way to streamline staff communications. Visit our website to learn more about us and join the thousands of senior care organizations who use VoiceFriend to improve staff engagement, manage staff compliance and decrease overtime expenses by as much as 25%.