According to the Institute of the German Economy, there will be a shortage of around 500,000 nursing staff across Germany by 2035. The reason: senior citizens are getting older and older and therefore need to be cared for longer. On the other hand, there is a shortage of current and future skilled workers. So we need to rethink our approach so that the next decades do not end in a humanitarian crisis. We have compiled a list of ways in which care facilities can attract students and career changers to the industry:
Actions for more attention
What nursing needs is more attention. Both to educate people about the job itself. But also about the opportunities for further education in nursing, which are often unknown to career starters. In simple words: nursing needs more advertising. Info events that are designed to be interesting and stimulating for potential career starters are well suited for this. The Christophsbad hospital group from Göppingen, for example, is being innovative at the local „Night of Training“ by letting recruiters immerse themselves in nursing at their information booth.
On the one hand by talking to trainees, on the other hand with practical exercises: Interested parties can get active themselves and test their resuscitation skills on a manikin with breathing simulation. The self-experiment in measuring vital signs also goes down well with the potential nurses of tomorrow. „Events like this are extremely important,“ knows Christian Graziosa, Head of Human Resources at Christophsbad. This is because they allow interested parties to experience the profession first-hand and contact the relevant staff directly if they have any questions.
Another way to recruit Generation Z for nursing is demonstrated by the Charité hospital in Berlin. „If you want to get the next generation of specialists excited about a career in the health and care sector, you have to appeal to young people via the medium that plays a central role in their everyday lives anyway: Games,“ says Çiğdem Uzunoğlu, head of the Digital Games Culture Foundation. Together, Charité and the Digital Games Culture Foundation are therefore designing a game in which interested parties virtually take on the role of a nurse. They experience everyday nursing care, can get an idea of the challenges and successes. And, in the best case, decide to learn the profession in the real world.
Working together to create optimized care conditions
Overtime, understaffing, shift work and too little pay – potential recruits are often put off by the comparatively poor working conditions. But this is a problem that policymakers want to address. „As the federal government, we want to solve the problems. We want to make concrete changes in the day-to-day work of nursing staff,“ said former Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn back in 2018. In order to make the profession more attractive, there have since been initial attempts at optimization, such as the „Immediate Care Program“ or the „Concerted Action on Care.“ Measures implemented so far include the introduction of collective agreements, subsidies from the Federal Employment Agency for further professional training, additional powers for nursing staff in the care of those in need of nursing care, or generalist training.
Pointing out to interested parties what has been done in the past three years and that there are potentially even more optimizations in the near future as a result of the programs can make the profession more appealing. And on a small scale, each facility can do additional things to improve conditions. For example, through an appreciative employee breakfast or a desire-oriented duty roster.
Convincing in an internship
Internships offer the first and most important impression of everyday nursing life. „An internship offers young people the chance to try out whether the nursing profession suits them and whether they can imagine practicing it in later years,“ says Thomas Götz, Secretary of State for Nursing and Health. Especially after the two-year pandemic, he said, it is important that internships are offered again in nursing facilities.
During the trial weeks, it is important to support the interns, integrate them into the team and create a pleasant working atmosphere. It also helps to prepare the internship: Institutions can provide information materials, assign contact persons and offer appointments for interviews. In this way, an internship can convince interested parties to subsequently opt for training at the facility.
Offering and accompanying career paths
Basic training doesn’t have to be the end of the road. Nursing offers many opportunities for further training and career advancement. Facilities should make continuing education accessible and support it, as well as present advancement options from the very beginning and then accompany employees step by step in their development. After all, this is what makes the profession attractive to trainees in the long term and keeps them in the industry. „With the support of my employer, I was able to steadily work my way up to the next level. Today, I am a residential area manager, a practice supervisor and am currently attending further training to become a palliative care specialist,“ says Barbara von der Wettern, residential area manager at Seniorenwohnen Kieferngarten in Munich. The 41-year-old started at the age of 18 as a ward assistant during the vacations.
