Now that the COVID-19 vaccine is here, many people are breathing a sigh of relief and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. People are beginning to make summer travel plans, and life may soon return to normal. That being said, there is now a demand for COVID-19 vaccinations, which means there is an increase in demand for healthcare workers to administer the vaccine. So what can your healthcare facility do to help mitigate the demand?
Abbella Medical Staffing is a medical staffing agency based in Baltimore, Maryland. We supply short-term employment opportunities with our travel nurses and allied health professionals. We work with major hospitals and other medical facilities all across the nation, providing ample opportunity for our employees to grow their skills and see different areas of the country. We ensure both our clients’ and our employees’ needs are taken care of. Below, we’ll offer up some tips for staffing your healthcare facility for COVID-19 vaccines and testing. Contact us to get started today!
Consider Cancelling or Cutting Back on Non-Essential Procedures & Office Visits
While no one wants to deny anyone preventative care, there are instances where some doctor’s appointments can wait. One tip to help with staffing for your healthcare facility is to free up an afternoon or a morning by rescheduling some patients’ appointments that are not urgent. This same advice holds for hospitals as well. They can simply postpone some appointments to get caught up on the rush for COVID-19 vaccines and tests.
Offer to Help Staff With Issues Preventing Them From Getting to Work
Transportation may be a challenge for some office workers, so offering to help with transportation or housing during an isolation case can help. If a staff member’s car breaks down or there’s a huge snowstorm and your employee can’t make it to work, try to provide help in any way you can. Have another employee pick them up on their way to work, or offer to help shovel at the end of the day. There may be miscellaneous funds you can allocate towards helping to pay for some of these types of expenses as well.
Repurpose Staff
Similar to postponing non-essential office visits, you can steal staff from other areas of your administration that aren’t quite as essential. Billing may be a good place to take a staff member or two for an afternoon to help out. Client-facing office staff as well could be repurposed for short periods of time, to cover staff’s lunch breaks and the like. Trying to minimize any impact on patient care is the key, and it is possible to still maintain high patient care while pulling people from other areas as well.
Ask for Voluntary Postponement of Time Off
While no one is advocating working all the time since everyone needs some rest and relaxation, as well as some mental recovery time, asking for staff to voluntarily postpone requested time off or time they may be thinking of taking off can help. It’s important to stress that this step is voluntary and that nothing will be held against your staff for taking the time off that they need to cope and recover. Healthcare is a demanding field, and these are trying times. Being supportive is the key.
Hire More Temporary Staff
While this seems the logical solution, in all practicality, hiring more staff can be challenging in COVID-19 times. Nurses are in short supply as it is, and with COVID-19, they are in high demand. This means finding high-quality nurses ready to work can take some doing. However, if you choose to invest in travel nurses with a medical staffing agency, such as Abbella Medical Staffing, you can find some of the best travel nurses ready to fill your temporary COVID-19 vaccination and testing needs.
Hiring a travel nurse can help eliminate your stress and worry on your regular staff and eliminate the need to repurpose other staff members. Plus, our travel nurses have been screened already, eliminating the hassle of your HR team starting from scratch. Our travel nurses are ready to help when needed, so give our nursing staffing agency in Baltimore a call to learn more today!
There’s no doubt that COVID-19 is throwing a wrench into everyone’s plans, from travel to doing everyday activities. It has caused many mental health issues and left many confused and distraught. Missing weddings and funerals — the important activities in life — can be devastating themselves. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and healthcare workers are continually on the front lines helping people get back to living.
Based in Baltimore, Abbella Medical Staffing helps healthcare facilities and hospitals meet their staffing needs in order to help administer COVID-19 vaccines and tests. Our short-term travel nursing assignments help you to alleviate some of the burden and stress you may be feeling due to an overwhelming need in your community. By partnering with us, we can help you with the highest-quality nurses and allied health professionals who are ready to offer the utmost care for your facility’s patients. Trained and ready to go, our travel nurses have experience in stepping right in and filling the needs that you have. If you are looking for some backup, we can help. Reach out to our nurse staffing agency to get started today!
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