Practice management: Staff job-sharing tips

The “revolving door” of medical clinic staff is nothing new, but today that door is whirling like a tornado, as demanding workloads, irate patients, pandemic burnout and personal reflection have many workers making a hasty exit. Job sharing is nothing new, either, and is growing in Canada’s public sector, and physicians themselves often opt to split the load with someone else. But can it work with clinic staff? According to HR Daily Advisor, flextime and flexspace policies are becoming increasingly popular in the post-pandemic workplace, with job sharing being one variation on flextime. Read: How to stop patient hostility “With the ‘Great Resignation’ and people leaving in droves, job sharing is one of those things that we’ve got to try to embrace,” said Marilyn Lawrie, a healthcare human resources consultant at BizShrink in Vancouver. “Staffing is always a problem in healthcare— finding good qualified people. Job sharing is something that government organizations have embraced for a long time, because they know that it works,” said Lawrie, “and it can work well elsewhere, too.” Advantages of job sharing include: recruiting, attracting and retaining qualified talent who want work-life balance reduced absenteeism trained staff who can temporarily fill in when others go on leave or vacation two workers can cover high peak workloads maximizing skills: job-sharers can each favour their particular likes and talents, increasing productivity and job satisfaction possibly less burnout no increased costs Of course, there can be disadvantages, too, such as difficulties scheduling meetings or training where both job-sharers must be present; potential disruption of workflow; and the possible need for more supervisory time and attention. Read: Practice management: Taming time Two models There are different ways of setting up a job share, according to HR Advisor Daily. In the twin model, for example, two workers share the same duties, with one person working on Monday and Tuesday, the second person working on Thursday and Friday, and both working part-time on Wednesday, for easy transfer of information and knowledge sharing. In the islands model, or job-split model, two employees share one fulltime position, but not its responsibilities. Each specializes in a different area of the position’s duties, enabling them to focus on their strengths. For example, one administrator might be more peoplefocused and do patient outreach; the other may be more suited to handling paperwork and details. Dr. Chris Sun, a family physician with the Crosstown Family Health Team in Toronto, said his clinic has tried job sharing “with some success.” In his view, the greatest benefit is having two staff members trained on the same job so that if one takes a leave of absence or quits, the practice is not disrupted: The remaining worker knows the job and may be willing to work more hours while a replacement is sought. “Our RN job share worked out well,” said Dr. Sun. “They collaborate on projects like Pap clinics and flu shot clinics and cancer screening callbacks with good successes to date,” he said. Read: 6 tips for better billing Dr. Sun said his clinic employs job sharers with its admin staff as well, who easily cover each other when one is sick or absent. “I’m not sure if it helps with burnout or employees being happier necessarily,” he said, noting that staff dissatisfaction in medicine is currently high across the board. “It definitely makes it easier to cope with temporary absences.” Dr. John Crosby, a Cambridge, Ont., family physician has seen job sharing work out well, and considers it a “no-brainer” especially when workers, usually women, are wanting to spend more time with family. “It works well with secretaries and nurses,” he said. “I find especially lately there are nurses who might be semiretired but still want to work some. They can share with someone else and come in only on a certain day or days, for example for all the needles, well-baby checks, prenatal visits, etc. It’s a win-win, and not expensive for the doctor." Sharing means communicating Experts say the key to successful job sharing is communication—between the workers themselves and with other staff and physicians. “Job sharing can work out really well if you can get those two people really aligned and they’re making sure that they’re touching base and exchanging information,” said Lawrie. “(There needs to be) a system whereby everybody does email handoffs at the end of the day. Although with EMRs you can assign tasks to people, EMRs really don’t give you the opportunity to do the expanse of information change that’s often needed.” Lawrie recommends a dedicated form of communication, where job-sharers outline what needs to be done, what needs to be followed up on and what can be left. “Formalizing communication channels is a really important part of how you manage, not just your human resources, but your daily operations,” said Lawrie. Read: Practice management: Clinic decor

Practice management: Staff job-sharing tips

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