Health

HE A LTH • Fall 2021 9 Vincent Hospital nurses strike starting in March. "The issue started before the pandemic and was exacerbated," said Muldoon. "During the pandemic, many nurses retired, other nurses who were not leaving the bedside left for hospitals with better pay, staffing, and working conditions. As a result, our staffing problems became that much worse." Staffing ratios is one of the predominant concerns voiced by striking Massachusetts Nurses Association union members. Saint Vincent employees were offered free-of-charge access to counseling throughout the pandemic, according to the hospital's communications department. In April 2020, frustrations among staff grew when the hospital furloughed several nurses, tightening an already short-handed team. A lack of communication between administrators and staff saddled nurses with even greater responsibility, both in creating a plan for the inf lux of patients Healthcare worker burnout The average annual rate of job openings in the U.S. healthcare sector has doubled since 2011. and supporting each other emotionally, said Muldoon. "Nurses really developed their own support system during COVID because we didn't feel there was any kind of crisis management or recognition," she said. "It was very frustrating that it felt like it was on us." Hospital solutions Now, hospitals are getting creative about offering mental health services to their employees. Dr. Steven Bird, a clinician experience officer at UMass, said there was very little programming when the clinician experience office opened in October 2019. Since then, Bird has helped launch a peer support network of caretakers and a wellness coaching service. The office is jointly funded by UMass Memorial Medical Center, UMass Memorial Medical Group, and the UMass Medical School, all headquartered in Worcester. As part of another initiative, a wellness coach travels by cart to Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 0 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% '21 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 3.1% 6.4% nursing stations to offer in-unit support during tense moments at work. "One thing we've learned is that the needs of people are largely work-unit dependent," said Bird. The clinician experience office is now focused on individualizing mental health care for specific units by developing programs meeting needs of workers in different settings, he said. In Massachusetts, there are 121 des- ignated health professional shortage areas, 10% of which are located in Central Massachusetts, according to the National Health Service Corps. The Massachusetts Department of Mental Health helps manage MassSupport, which launched in the spring of 2020, to offer crisis counsel- ing and community outreach, funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. MassSupport is directed toward all Massachusetts residents, but includes healthcare workers as one of its prima- ry groups for engagement, offering a crisis text line and a directory of con- tacts for mental health services. A quarter of U.S. healthcare workers have considered leaving their job since the pandemic hit, but demand for nurses continues to rise. H PHOTO/COURTESY OF UMASS MEMORIAL HEALTH

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