American health among the elderly is of growing concern.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau-by the year 2050, senior citizens will make up 21% of America’s population. The concern is not that people are living longer-the concern is will American health standards be able to meet the growing medical needs of those who will need 24-7 medical attention in personal care homes and like minded facilities.
The success of these homes depends largely on the team of caregivers who are responsible for meeting the care plans designed for this aging population. The team core is made up of a nurse, physician, social worker, and a physical therapist.
Increasing staff stability is of great importance to a healthy facility. There is a high turnover in the nursing staff and many have set goals to decrease this turnover by at least 15% by the year-2018.
Top 3 Areas that need Re-organized in American Health
Organization usually begins at the top level of a facility due to the fact that they are responsible for implementing and promoting such changes. The challenges though are they may not be the same people in charge of adding funds to the budget for the care of the facility.
The dissatisfaction of the nurses seems to be about the same across the board to some degree:
• Work Schedule- The majority of nurses feel overworked due to their work schedule. The solution to this is two-fold. The person in charge of the work schedule needs to be someone who is skilled in this area and shares compassion for the residents and the staff. A popular choice today in scheduling is flexible scheduling & job sharing.
• Sufficient Orientation- Another major issue is that nurses are left with untrained CNA’s to take care of residents. This creates a conflict between the nurses and the assistants. An Orientation and Continued Learning program is a must for new employees.
• Quality Meetings- Nurses that are part of interdisciplinary care plan meetings, quality meetings, and have good relationships with their peers, and feel valued for their services are more likely to be satisfied in their positions.
The amount of money it costs facilities to re-train and to run new ads for new employees all the time could be put into making your facility a place that people can’t wait to get into and never want to leave.