By Melinda Juneau, Snelling.com

In the medical field, you are trained for emergencies. They happen almost daily and if a day is calm, you begin looking around to see what is wrong; it’s just in the nature of healthcare for the unexpected to happen. No one can plan their medical problems and it is one of the reasons most medical facilities will never close at the end of the day. A medical facility is usually open 24/7.   Do you have enough staff to provide proper care? Will your staff be overworked and overtired due to poor scheduling and be prone to mistakes? The summer is a time of year when many facilities see a decrease in the quality of patient care due to a lack of scheduling but you can ensure yours doesn’t face this same problem.

Summer vacation is quickly approaching and that means many members of your staff will have added requests for time off due to family vacations, family reunions, and personal days when the weather is perfect for a day outside.  Because your staff deserves the time off, you want to be able to give them the days as requested, but the facility will still need to be open.  Are you able to provide excellent care when one manager is on vacation, the other is ill, and the third one has to be home for the AC repair person to show up?  Maybe you have some staff members who will rise to the occasion and provide the necessary leadership but is that a gamble you want to take with peoples’ lives?  Of course not!  You want to provide excellent care and maintain order within your medical facility.  There are two simple ways to keep your facility running as smoothly as possible: Read the rest of this entry »

By Melinda Juneau, Snelling.com
The average healthcare employee will spend anywhere from 8-11+ hours at their workplace on a daily basis.  What are you doing to facilitate a healthy life for them while they are at work?  Do you have a wellness plan implemented?  Taking the time to care about your staffs’ health and well-being can go a long way for the efficiency and high level of care you provide.  It can cut down on absenteeism, improve morale, and even promote less tension between the staff.

According to the CDC Prevention Publication of April 2012, it is estimated that as much as 75% of total U.S. health care spending is for people with chronic conditions.  It goes on to identify the four modifiable health risks that are responsible for much of this chronic disease burden: tobacco use, poor nutrition, lack of physical activity, and excessive alcohol consumption.

If your facility has a wellness program in place, when was the last time you took an inventory to see who is using it? When was the last time you heard any type of employee feedback regarding the programs?  It can take time to benefit from the results of a wellness program so if yours just began, it is crucial to stay committed to the process.

Use this simple guide as a way to take a quick inventory of your program. If you are meeting these needs, the program is headed in the right direction. If not, consider various ways to implement changes so it becomes a tangible benefit rather than just a proposed plan. Read the rest of this entry »

By Melinda Juneau, Snelling.com

Just because you watch a hospital drama every week, does not make you an expert on the goings-on in a hospital. Yet, on a daily basis, nurses are exposed to those who feel as though they have the inside scoop on hospitals. Nurses will hear it all before their shift is over but these five are ranked at the top of their list:

1. So I bet you and my doctor are dating, right?  You two would be so cute together.

Not only is that rude and meddling but as in any field, it is considered unprofessional to date those with whom you work. It is rare that nurses and doctors can even find time in their schedules outside of work where they can socialize.  And most nurses don’t have the energy to deal with the hours and scheduling that come with the doctors at the hospital.

Read the rest of this entry »

It only takes one worker to give a company and its employees a bad reputation.  It only takes one worker to damage a company’s brand.  That worker could be a full-time employee, but it could just as well be a temporary worker.   The issue of how to integrate a larger contingent workforce into your day-to-day operations is starting to become an issue that will require more thought, strategy and actionable items now and into the future.

The reason behind this is that the number of temporary workers that are joining the workforce is steadily increasing.  The 21st century is truly the “century of the temporary”.  Since 2009, the number of these workers – seasonally adjusted – has increased by 27% (Source: BLS Current Employment Statistics Survey).  This compares to a growth rate of less than 3% for all private sector jobs.

But why should you be concerned about your brand and the impact that your workers (all of them) have on it?  The answer is simple.   Your brand is more than just your newest advertising campaign or your logo.  It is symbol – a feeling – that defines what your company stands for what it will deliver, and where it stands in relationship to competitors.

If you have temporary workers who don’t know and don’t understand your brand, they could inadvertently damage it. This is done hundreds (if not thousands) of times a day with the simple interactions that happen between employees and customers, prospects, partners, analysts, etc.   These interactions can potentially make or break a company’s reputation better than any media campaign designed by the best marketer ever could.

Therefore they need not only to know what your brand is but they have to believe in it and they have to internalize it in every action.

To do this, temporary workers need to be properly educated on the brand – its value, its components and its management.  This is where a reputable partner – such as Snelling – can help.  Our recruiters and managers take the time to learn your company and identify with your culture, your objectives and your branding initiatives.   Because of this, we can send quality candidates that will work to your benefit, not your harm.

So visit your local Snelling office today or visit us at http://www.Snelling.com to learn more of how we can partner with you to find your best-fit candidate.

I’m David Allen. As the President and CEO of Snelling Staffing Services, let me be the first to welcome you to our blog.

As a new year approaches, I’ve renewed Snelling’s commitment to help organizations and job seekers achieve the success they desire. To that end, I’ve created our Hot Topics blog. Each week I’ll post timely, relevant information designed to help you:
• get better results from our workforce solutions;
• stay current with the latest staffing industry news and trends affecting your business;
• be even more successful in your job.

And if you’re seeking employment, our blog will add value for you, too. Each month I’ll share innovative job search and career management tips you can use to get noticed, get ahead and ultimately land the job you want.

So please add the Hot Topics blog to your “Favorites” or subscribe to our RSS feed. Encourage your colleagues and friends to do the same!

I want to hear from you.
Have a staffing or career-related question? Want to learn more about a particular workforce management issue? Simply leave a comment below. This blog was designed for your benefit – let me know what you’d like to read more about, and I’ll deliver.

Thank you!
–David
David Allen
President / CEO
Snelling Staffing Services