The COVID-19 pandemic hit the health care industry hardest. Even after the worst of the pandemic has passed, many hospitals and health care facilities still suffer from significant staff shortages in almost every sector.
In the face of these staff shortages, talent management in health care has adopted technological solutions to help maintain talent. These technologies fulfill tasks to reduce the workload of existing personnel and streamline processes. Learning how to retain employees in health care using digital and computer technology can save a facility.
Using Digital Technology for Routine Tasks
One of the significant factors for the record-breaking staff shortages currently plaguing the health care industry is burnout. The COVID-19 pandemic put more stress on health care workers than ever in the modern century. As demand for care services skyrocketed, government spacing restrictions limited the number of personnel that could work at a time.
Nurses and health care workers are expected to take on more work for little to no increases in pay, leading to job burnout. In response, many health care facilities began adopting computer technology to relieve the burden of various tasks.
Many clerical jobs in the health care industry are routine but are no less important than others. Tasks such as filing paperwork, scheduling appointments and testing are how essential information travels from one part of the system to the next. It is these tasks that computers and artificial intelligence can excel in. Using AI computer programs for filing and scheduling can make the workplace far more efficient than forcing workers to use a fax and file system.
Chat programs can act as phone systems to reduce the amount of calls nurses and workers have to take. They can guide patients to the proper departments, answer frequently asked questions and even assist them with scheduling appointments. This can lift an enormous burden off caregivers’ shoulders, allowing them to use their time to deliver patient care. Reducing the workload for health care workers in this way is one of the best ways to retain employees in health care.
Adopting EHR Strategies
One of the biggest trends in health care today is adopting comprehensive digital filing systems that can make all patient medical data records easily accessible to anyone. Electronic health records (EHR) are electronic versions of a patient’s medical history maintained by providers over time. They include the key administrative and clinical data for providing patient care.
Using these EHR systems properly can relieve a large part of the workload for health care employees on every level. However, employees will need training on how the new systems work before they can become effective. HR and talent management in health care should conduct this training.
Automation in Healthcare Laboratories
Clerical tasks are not the only applications for computer technology and AI. The testing laboratories are one area of the health care industry staff shortages hit particularly hard. During the pandemic, labs had to process thousands of COVID-19 tests daily with minimal staff.
Because of this, laboratories have adopted automated testing solutions using computer and robotics technology. Machines that can perform tests at a much higher rate run them quickly without human input. This allows tests to complete in batches for more organized deployment so patients can get results faster.
Automation is helping laboratories in other ways as well. Robotics technology and artificial intelligence are making logistics much more efficient by ensuring testing samples get to the correct departments on time. Automation technology can provide a steady workflow with little room for disruptions that can cause delays in testing. This will only become more important as scientists discover new variants of COVID-19.
Streamlining the workflow of labs using computer technology can increase efficiency and job satisfaction for lab technicians and workers. Having automation take on many of the most time-consuming repetitive tasks gives technicians more freedom to prioritize more critical work — relieving the stress associated with testing promptly.
More Flexible Work Options
Talent management in health care can be a challenge in the industry’s current state. When
retaining employees in health care, one of the greatest assets of digital technology is the ability to work remotely.
Because of the space restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many health care employees had limited time to work inside the facility. Remote work became the answer for many of these workers.
Thanks to remote work, many health care employees could continue to perform essential clerical duties without being in the office. This ensured their workflow continued smoothly despite the increasing demand for health care services and fewer people working there.
The option to work remotely is also a big stress reliever for many workers who have to commute to the office. Saving money on fuel and travel time can be a massive asset to retaining workers. Remote work has become so in demand that many employees list the option as an essential part of their decision when looking for employment.
Digital Technology to Secure Health Care’s Future
Developing methods for retaining employees in health care will inevitably involve adopting more digital technology solutions. As talent management in health care becomes more of a challenge, computer technology can make it much easier by reducing workload and making tasks more efficient than ever before.
