Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Blogs
    • AI
    • Deals
    • Layoff Tracker
    • HIMSS 2023
  • Opinion
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - AI and Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
  • Data & Insights
    • Data & Insights Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Opinion
January 25, 2018 11:00 PM

Guest commentary: Will millennials be motivated to fill the healthcare staffing void?

Melissa Powell
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Melissa Powell

    As expected, baby boomers in all industries are packing up their cubicles and offices and making way for a new generation of employees. But according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of individuals working in nursing and residential-care facilities—a subsector of the healthcare and social assistance sector—has been increasing yearly since 1990. And a 2017 report from Deloitte shows that in all areas of healthcare, the number of jobs in home health services and outpatient-care centers have increased at a faster rate proportionally than any other category.

    That being said, there's still strong concern among healthcare providers that dwindling numbers of teachers at medical schools, nursing programs and other training sites means there won't be enough people trained to meet the demand for new caregivers, and that millennials lack the interest to pursue roles as nurses, home healthcare aides and even doctors. The biggest fear for employers is that rather than having new staff quickly fill the new openings, they'll end up having too many vacancies in the hospitals and caregiver shortages in nursing homes, threatening the quality of care and access to services.

    Already, millennials are acting as unpaid caregivers. According to AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving, almost a quarter of people ages 18-34 are taking on additional responsibilities for their loved ones. So how do professional elder-care providers encourage millennials to pursue this career path?

    When trying to appeal to millennials, it's important to look at what they want out of their jobs and career paths. Regardless of what industry they choose, their general needs and priorities remain consistent. According to a Gallup survey, more than any other generation, millennials search for jobs that provide opportunities for them to learn and grow—they want mentors as well as strong potential for advancement. While serving patients and their families is always a healthcare organization's first priority, management must take into account their employees' desire to feel fully involved within their workplace, to receive feedback about their performance that will lead to improvement, and to be respected.

    Additionally, given the number of millennials leaving college with student debt, especially ones who've gone on to pursue graduate degrees, they also want a salary that alleviates previous financial burdens and satisfies their current needs. Although the majority of healthcare positions fill these criteria, there are still a few—most notably psychiatric technicians and aides, nursing assistants and orderlies, and home health aides—who typically earn less than $30,000 a year. Depending on where they live as well as their lifestyle, millennials may not be willing to settle for this, even if pursuing elder-care is their chosen career path.

    Millennials in all fields also crave flexibility in their work schedules. While that's harder to accommodate in the elder-care sector, since consistency of caregivers is an important part of providing personalized services, ensuring that employees have a healthy work-life balance isn't impossible.

    We also can't forget the appeal of state-of-the-art technology. The millennial generation expects medical facilities to have user-friendly systems, whether it's for note-taking, patient data entry, research, or internal and external communication. They also don't want to use outdated technology when updated models provide better features and increased accuracy.

    Being a professional within the elder-care community is a rewarding and extremely gratifying experience. Ultimately, to ensure that elder-care job openings will be filled quickly, we need to demonstrate our commitment to incorporating new technology and providing the necessary opportunities for our younger hires to design and implement strategies for serving and treating patients, communicating with their families, and connecting with and learning from the other members of the staff. We also need to reward excellence through fair pay grades and appropriate benefits and transform whatever situations we can into teaching opportunities that'll keep our care providers at the top of their game throughout their careers.

    Not everyone is going to come to elder-care with a pre-existing passion, but if we do our part to appeal to the next generation of caregivers, it's possible to ignite a spark that may not have been there before.

    Melissa Powell is chief operating officer of the Allure Group, a chain of elder-care facilities serving New York City and New Jersey.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Elevance Health
    Elevance, Blue Cross Louisiana halt $2.5B proposed deal
    North Carolina Medicaid expansion to launch on Dec. 1
    North Carolina Medicaid expansion to launch on Dec. 1
    Most Popular
    1
    CMS tries luring providers to revamped Medicare ACOs
    2
    Oregon joins other states in setting ratios for nurse staffing
    3
    Blue Shield CA taps Amazon, Mark Cuban, CVS for new PBM model
    4
    A health innovation hub grows in Lake Nona Medical City
    5
    Hospital-at-home providers push for Medicaid coverage
    Sponsored Content
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Help Center
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Blogs
      • AI
      • Deals
      • Layoff Tracker
      • HIMSS 2023
    • Opinion
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - AI and Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
      • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
    • Data & Insights
      • Data & Insights Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing