According to a 2016 Nursing Solutions report, the average turnover in the nursing industry has reached 16.5% with an average turnover cost of $50k. More than ever healthcare organizations must consider employee recognition as part of their overall retention strategy. While some of the turnover in the healthcare industry is driven by the inherently stressful responsibilities of the employees, there are ways turnover can be controlled – employee recognition.
Healthcare employees work in extremely high-stress situations and are not rewarded accordingly. Underappreciated and overworked employees will never be able to perform to their best. Employee recognition can make a difference in motivating employees. It can boost morale and even inspire them to provide the best patient care.
Many healthcare organizations are choosing to implement recognition programs as a solution to their employee satisfaction challenges. Recognition programs incentivize employees and make them feel more connected to their workplace. Having a mix of value-based incentives and performance-based incentives helps make recognition achievable and worthwhile. However, for the recognition program to work as designed, all personnel involved from managers and supervisors to doctors and nurses, need to be invested in using the program and encouraging other employees to do the same. Here are some ways to get healthcare staff involved with creating a recognition program.
- Involve employees in planning. Before choosing a recognition program, get employee input. Ask employees how they would like to be recognized. Consider their ideas while choosing a recognition platform that works for the organization.
- Create a committee. Appoint a few people within the healthcare organization to manage the recognition program. Get a mix of employees from various levels in the organization. Task the committee with ensuring recognition is given regularly. They can also be in charge of planning special recognition events.
- Develop recognition criteria and find a recognition platform. The key to a recognition program is to have meaningful criteria that is special and attainable. Having a recognition platform to help manage it can take the stress off the committee. Levy Recognition can develop cloud-based programs specific to healthcare organization needs.
- Get everyone involved. Announce and launch the recognition program by hosting a kickoff party or information event. Invite healthcare staff to attend the event and learn about how to use the recognition platform and what benefits it can offer. Have committee members at the event ready to answer questions.
- Start recognizing. Make recognizing a consistent and meaningful part of every day. It is sure to help build relationships, increase employee satisfaction, and create a more involved workplace.
It is important that upper management personnel recognize and communicate when an employee has done a job well done. Having a strong culture of recognition is especially important for healthcare organizations. Once employees know that their efforts are appreciated and their work rewarded, healthcare organizations should start seeing the benefits, including an increased productivity, a lower turnover and an improved brand image.
If your healthcare organization is ready to start recognizing, speak to one of our dedicated Recognition Experts about designing a recognition program today!