HAP Releases a Report

HAP’s Workforce Shortage Survey—January 2023

In January 2023, HAP released a report on Pennsylvania’s Healthcare Workforce Challenges.  This report was the culmination of a year-long process by HAP’s Health Care Talent Task Force to develop strategies to support HAP’s goal of assisting members with enhancing their health care team talent pool.  The report was based on a workforce survey conducted during November 2021, that helped guide HAP in developing key public policy priorities.

HAP’s Health Care Talent Task Force, comprised of hospital administrative and clinical leaders and health professional educators, used the study to identify the current nurse and allied health professional staffing, as well as physician recruitment needs in the health care community.Select key findings include:

Vacancy and Turnover Rates:

• • The vacancy rates for registered nurses (RN) providing direct patient care increased from 20.5 percent to 30.7 percent.
  • Certified registered nurse practitioners’ vacancy rates increased from 21.5 percent to 31.7 percent.
  • Respiratory therapists’ vacancy rates jumped from 19.7 percent to 32.4 percent.
  • Medical technologists/lab technicians’ vacancy rates increased from 9.9 percent to 24 percent during this period.
  • Additionally, vacancy rates for medical assistants increased from 29.7 percent to 42.2 percent.

Areas of Physician Need:

• • Primary Care
  • Hospital Medicine Services: Hospitalists, Radiologists, Critical Care Medicine
  • Specialty Services: Neurologists
  • Additionally, 21 percent of survey respondents indicated they are experiencing delays onboarding physicians under the J-1 VISA program administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

Retention and Recruitment Strategies:

• • Respondents identified the following strategies among their top three most successful for retention/recruitment.
    • Increasing base compensation
    • Sign-on bonuses, Extra shift bonus, Increased shift Reimbursement

Read the full report at: Report: Addressing Member Hospital Workforce Needs, HAP’s Workforce Shortage Survey Executive Summary, January 2023 – Resource Center (haponline.org)