Retention of HCW to
overcome skills
shortage
Dimakatso Shirinda
Health Risk Management Strategist
©082 909 1104
Agenda
• Introduction
• HIV Impact on your business
• Healthcare worker statistics
• Motivational factors for HCW’s
• Recommendations
• Strategic considerations
• Conclusion
Let’s just imagine…
Competitor sets up a similar business across your
premises, essentially destroying your business and its
sustainability…
•
•
•
•
Market share
Customer base
Profitably
Trained and competent employees
WHAT DO YOU DO?
YOU CHOOSE TO BE INNOVATIVE…
Create better products,reseach new technologies, improve processes
and systems to ensure adequate ROI, Recruit new staff ,Upskill existing
staff, Incentivise them, Reposition your brand
WHY IS THAT NOT
ALWAYS THE CASE WITH
HCW’s?
• The HIV epidemic is still one of the major challenges
to the country's socio-economic development.
• Health worker retention is critical for health system
performance and a key problem is how best to
motivate and retain health workers.
Corporate HIV/AIDS impact: forces summary
Increased
absenteeism
Staff
turnover
Loss of
skills
Knowledg
e
attrition
Declining
morale
Insurance cover
Retirement funds
Health and safety
Corporate costs: summary
Medical assistance
Testing/Counseling
Funeral costs
Increased
costs
Clearly there is a need for effective Healthcare Worker Retention
Strategies …
HCW Statistics…
• Africa has 2.3 Health Workers p/1000 population
VS.
• America has 24.8 Health Workers p/1000
Several major themes regarding motivational
factors were identified
• Financial (in terms of salary or allowances)
• Career development (in regards to the
possibility to specialise or be promoted)
• Continuing education (having the opportunity
to take classes and attend seminars)
• Hospital infrastructure (the physical condition of
the health facility, in papers often described as
'work environment')
BMC Health Services Research 2008
Motivational factors were identified
continues
…
•
Resource availability (refers to equipment and medical
supplies that are necessary for health workers to perform
their job)
•
Hospital Management (Poor management practices may
contribute to high attrition, while management practices
that value health workers may reduce attrition )
• Personal recognition or appreciation (either from
managers, colleagues of the community)
• Other themes included fringe benefits (e.g. housing and
transport allowances) , job security , personal safety , staff
shortages and social factors, such as effect on family life
BMC Health Services Research 2008
Implementation challenges often
experienced
• “Silo”
approach
• Lack of leadership endorsement and participation
• Lack of union buy-in and participation
• Reactive vs proactive
• Lack of financial resources
• Perceived to be an HR issue vs a business imperative
• Separate scheme from employer initiatives
Recommendations
Actively “promoting” these professions at schools
Increasing the number of tertiary institutions producing health professionals
“Claw back” on health professionals who want to leave the country
Restructuring remuneration packages
Increasing safety measures at public hospitals
Reviewing the curriculums of all these professions to be in line with the latest
developments e.g. include component of managed heath care
Strategic considerations
• Retired Health Care Workers are in a good position to drive Home
Based Care Programmes (experience, loyalty)
• Training of lab staff, definite roles for community caregivers and
Lay-counsellours
• Repositioning of the profession through innovative campaigns to
attract new entrants
• Specific HCW retention strategies, including financial and nonfinancial incentives, to be addressed
• Health worker HIV/AIDS treatment & prevention programmes, incl.
post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) to always be in place.
•
Deployment policies, skills mix, task shifting and their relationship to
the rest of the health system needs to be clearly defined
• Continued support from regulatory bodies
Conclusion
Whilst we expect HCW’s to show us
kindness,we,too need to show them
kindness…
THANK YOU…