SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Members of the CEO Coalition and a group of healthcare experts, in collaboration with the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), have identified evidence-based actions that health system executives can use now to support the well-being of nurses, doctors, and other team members at the current stage of the pandemic. The group recently launched the 2022 Healthcare Workforce Rescue Package, a first-of-its-kind list that prioritizes the five most critical actions health system leaders can take immediately to safeguard the emotional and psychological needs of healthcare workers.
“Our health system is at a breaking point, frontline workers are in crisis, and staffing shortages are at an all-time high. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continues to put an unsustainable level of risk and stress on healthcare team members,” said Bridget Duffy, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Vocera, and a founding partner of the CEO Coalition. “This collaboration addresses this emergency head-on with urgent and actionable system-based solutions that leaders can use to protect care team members from further trauma and slow down the Great Resignation in healthcare.”
Seeing only long-term recommendations and no industry consensus on tactical, short-term strategies, the founders of the collaboration felt compelled to combine their expertise to define and share a succinct message and accessible toolkit to help support clinicians and other care team members systemwide. These actions focus on system changes and support, not on individual well-being approaches.
“When it comes to team member well-being and burnout, health system leaders are being bombarded with many different messages from multiple sources with competing priorities and long-term goals,” said co-chair of this collaboration, Heather Farley, Chief Wellness Officer of ChristianaCare. “They need to know what to prioritize so they can take action now.”
The initiative is led by national experts with experience and passion around protecting the safety and well-being of the healthcare workforce:
- Heather Farley, MD, MHCDS, FACEP, Chief Wellness Officer, ChristianaCare; member of CHARM Chief Wellness Officer Network (Co-Chair)
- Tina Shah, MD, MPH, Principal, TNT Health Enterprise LLC (Co-Chair)
- Elisa Arespacochaga, MBA, VP, Workforce & Clinical Affairs, American Hospital Association
- Robyn Begley, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, SVP and CNO, American Hospital Association, and CEO, American Organization of Nursing Leadership
- Liz Boehm, Executive Strategist, Vocera, and Learning Community Lead, CEO Coalition
- J. Corey Feist, JD, MBA, President, Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes' Foundation
- Jessica Perlo, MPH, Senior Director, Institute for Healthcare Improvement
- Christine A. Sinsky, MD, VP Professional Satisfaction, American Medical Association
To access the 2022 Healthcare Workforce Rescue Package, click here. The package includes top resources for developing peer support programs, crisis documentation protocols, voluntary team redeployment, rapid improvement processes, psychological first aid training, and more. The expert members of this initiative call on healthcare leaders to act quickly on these resources and encourage healthcare workers to use the list as an advocacy tool to foster more action and promote the importance of their safety and well-being.
The Rescue Package was developed in collaboration with the NAM Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being & Resilience and is derived from the NAM’s Resource Compendium for Health Care Worker Well-Being.
About the CEO Coalition
The CEO Coalition, co-founded by 10 health system CEOs across the U.S., is on a mission to protect the physical safety, emotional well-being, and just treatment of all who work in healthcare. Focused on the heart of safety, the CEO Coalition published a Declaration of Principles outlining three pillars of change needed to build a future of caring, trust, and health justice. The co-founders of the CEO Coalition have sparked a national movement and are turning the Declaration into an action plan for meaningful and sustainable change. For more information, visit www.CEOCoalition.com.
