2023 Strategic Workforce Challenges

Staff shortages, long hours with no breaks, delays in receiving necessary supplies, and overall low morale have brought forth new core challenges that we must continue to address nationwide as we enter 2023. For society as a whole, the 2020s have been a decade of difficulties and adversity. As it was at the forefront of many of these studies, healthcare has taken the brunt of these difficulties. Over the previous three years, starting at the beginning of the Pandemic, healthcare personnel have overcome many of the challenges that were placed in their path. As we move towards 2023, we must continue to address additional national core concerns caused by staff shortages, long hours without breaks, delays in acquiring required supplies, and general low morale. We must recruit and keep competent healthcare professionals. With ongoing pressure to address personnel gaps, health systems have had to deal with extremely high demand. There are several tools that can be used to resolve the healthcare workforce crisis, including:

Recruitment and retention strategies: Organizations can implement strategies to attract and retain healthcare workers, such as offering competitive salaries and benefits, providing training and development opportunities, and creating a positive work-life balance.

• Telehealth and virtual care: Telehealth and virtual care can help to increase access to healthcare services, by allowing patients to receive care remotely. This can help to ease the burden on the healthcare workforce by reducing the need for in-person visits.
• Task shifting: Task shifting involves training non-clinical staff to perform certain tasks, such as administering medication or taking vital signs, which can help to increase the overall capacity of the healthcare workforce.
• Automation and technology: Automation and technology can help to streamline certain tasks and processes, such as scheduling appointments or managing patient records, which can help to free up the time of healthcare workers.
• Community-based healthcare: Community-based healthcare can involve partnering with non-traditional healthcare providers, such as community health workers or faith-based organizations, to provide care to underserved communities.
• Public-private partnership: Governments and private sectors can partner to provide more healthcare services, training and education opportunities, to increase the number of healthcare providers.
• International recruitment: Organizations can also recruit healthcare professionals from other countries to help meet the demand for healthcare services.

These tools can be used in combination to help resolve the healthcare workforce crisis, by increasing the overall capacity of the healthcare workforce, and improving access to care for patients.