Navigating the Healthcare Workforce Shortage: How to Safeguard Your Organization’s Most Important Asset

Healthcare organizations have been beset by a series of harrowing storms. Environmental, market, and demographic conditions had already caused a significant workforce shortage when the COVID-19 pandemic added unprecedented challenges to the mix. Healthcare leaders cannot simply hope the storm will pass but must tackle these issues today.

Navigating the Healthcare Workforce Shortage: How to Safeguard Your Organization’s Most Important Asset provides simple, practical, and proven strategies for healthcare leaders to address one of the biggest workforce shortages in recent history. The ideas and plans presented are built on real-life examples of organizations that have successfully overcome their workforce challenges.

Authors Tresha Moreland and Lori Wightman identify six key levers that healthcare leaders can use to address workforce shortages in their organization. The book delves deeply into the new problems posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the creativity needed to persevere through them.

The six levers covered in this book are:

• Strengthening organizational resiliency
• Shaping a better workplace culture
• Improving employee retention rates
• Aligning care quality and organizational effectiveness
• Taking control of internal and external recruitment strategies
• Preparing the workforce for the future

Confronting the healthcare workforce shortage will not be easy. But with some creative thinking, new approaches, and a commitment to change, healthcare organizations can experience a smoother voyage through the storm.

Lori Wightman MSN, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, is a chief nursing officer with more than 25 years of progressive nursing leadership experience in diverse healthcare settings. She developed executive coaching skills through the Blue Mesa Coaching program and has extensive experience in coaching, mentoring, and succession planning. She has served as faculty in university nursing programs to contribute to the growth of the profession. She holds a master’s degree in nursing to serve patients as a clinical nurse specialist.

Tresha Moreland, FACHE, MBA, MS, SPHR, is a business advisor and executive with more than 30 years of experience in human resource leadership roles. She holds certifications as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, Six Sigma Black Belt professional, and Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Her specialties as a consultant include organizational strategic planning, workforce planning, talent management and employee engagement, leadership development and succession planning, and internal communication. She holds a master’s degree in human resources management and a master’s degree in business administration.