Several key factors influence patient satisfaction in healthcare facilities: the quality of clinical care, the way staff communicates with those in their care, system organization, and the overall environment of the facility. Patients experience far less anxiety about their health when the facility is organized and well-run. Competent staff elicits a sense of trust, and when staff is accessible, patients feel prioritized.
Unfortunately, staffing shortages and gaps fail to support patient satisfaction, and ultimately that becomes obvious through low assessment scores. These scores reflect poorly on your organization, which undermines your ability to thrive and serve those in your care. Reputation is everything when it comes to healthcare facilities.
But just how do staffing gaps impact your patient satisfaction scores? And what adjustments are necessary to ensure you always have the competent and quality staff you need? Here we explain the issues with staffing gaps, how they determine your overall patient satisfaction scores, and how you can take steps to prevent problems that come from not having sufficient staff to address patient care.
How Staffing Gaps Influence Patient Satisfaction
Across healthcare systems, research consistently links staffing levels to facility report cards given by patients. Things like increased risks for falls, higher rates of infections, and more readmissions are more likely to be reported in facilities that regularly have staffing shortages.
Gaps in adequate staffing soon become a facility failure as quality and safety suffer, ultimately impacting the finances of your healthcare organization.
Some of the signs your facility may be headed for some serious problems related to patient care and satisfaction are:
- Delayed response to call lights
- Rushed care
- Lack of bedside communication or communication with families
- Delays in discharge instructions and education
- Frequent complaints
When Gaps Risk Wellbeing of Patients and Staff
Two additional, and critical, issues related to understaffing and staffing gaps that must be addressed are missed care and staff burnout. With missed care, you put your entire facility and patients/residents at risk. Understaffed facilities may omit or delay routine tasks like taking vitals, turning patients, skimping on hygiene, or assessing pain. It may be tempting to take some shortcuts here and there, but don’t risk it. These shortcuts may seem harmless at the time, but you are risking your patients’ health and care.
Staff burnout is a “catch-22” result of shortages. The more frequent the staff gaps, the harder your remaining staff need to work to overcome the issues. The more you tax your nursing staff, the more burnout looms larger and larger. Nurses call out or leave altogether. Those who do stay often suffer compassion fatigue and lose their empathetic edge. Patients suffer the consequences, and satisfaction plummets.
What You Can Do to Close Staffing Gaps and Raise Your Satisfaction Scores
Patient satisfaction is the result of how much time and attention your staff can provide. If patients feel cared for by competent staff, your scores will automatically trend up. So, closing those staffing gaps is highly important to the success and reputation of your healthcare facility. Here are some ways you can do just that.
- Embrace Flexible Staffing: Utilize per diem, part-time, travel, and temporary nurses to cover predictable gaps. Partner with BOS Medical Staffing to cover these staffing needs. BOS nursing staff is already credentialed and vetted, so should your patient load increase, we can provide staff to cover the gaps.
- Make Retention a Priority: Flexible scheduling, manageable workloads, work-life balance, and recognition all fuel staff satisfaction, which in turn feeds into the satisfaction of your patients.
- Provide the Right Tools: When you support technology and use it to handle non-clinical tasks, your nurses have more time to spend on patient care.
- Make Yourself Accessible: Let your staff know they can reach out to you if they have any issues or concerns. Provide transparent communication and let your nurses know they are seen, heard, and respected. A fully supported team delivers the kind of care your patients value.
We Offer Solutions
At BOS Medical Staffing, we understand how critically understaffing impacts your patient satisfaction scores. That’s why we pride ourselves on providing your facility with solutions. Please contact BS Medical Staffing today, and let’s get started filling your gaps.
