El Camino Health: Innovating Nurse Manager Support for Improved Retention and Engagement
El Camino Health, a prominent healthcare system serving the San Francisco Bay Area, faced challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic with elevated employee retention issues and overburdened nurse managers. The health system had historically maintained a low RN turnover rate of 5%, but this increased to 12% during the crisis, impacting employee engagement.
Recognizing the importance of nurse managers in both employee satisfaction and patient care, El Camino Health sought innovative solutions to support these essential leaders. Cheryl Reinking, DNP, RN, Chief Nursing Officer at El Camino Health, emphasized the need to enhance manager-team interactions to boost satisfaction and retention levels.
To address these challenges, El Camino Health turned to Laudio, a health IT vendor, for a platform designed to centralize and streamline frontline managers’ work. The platform aimed to simplify core workflows, reduce system complexity, and provide data-driven recommendations for personalized engagement with team members.
By implementing the Laudio platform, El Camino Health enabled nurse managers to access a centralized hub for their work, integrating data from HRIS and other systems to prioritize high-impact actions. The platform’s AI capabilities facilitated timely recognition of staff achievements and improved communication with team members, ultimately enhancing engagement and retention.
The results of implementing the new technology were significant, with El Camino Health successfully reducing RN turnover by seven percentage points, restoring retention rates to pre-pandemic levels. This stability not only benefitted the organization financially but also improved employee engagement and operational efficiency.
Reinking highlighted the positive feedback from leaders using the platform, citing increased efficiency and focus on team engagement as key outcomes. She advised other healthcare organizations to carefully assess technology solutions for nurse managers, ensuring integration with existing systems and a user-centered design approach.
In conclusion, El Camino Health’s innovative approach to supporting nurse managers with technology has proven successful in enhancing retention, engagement, and operational efficiency. By prioritizing frontline leaders’ needs and streamlining workflows, the health system has set a new standard for nurse manager support in the healthcare industry.
