This article is sponsored by KARE. In this Voices Interview, Skilled Nursing News sits down with Laura Cambria, Senior Vice President of Operations, KARE, to learn about innovative approaches to nursing recruitment. She explains how operators can ensure they are hiring accountable candidates that are a good fit for their facilities, and she discusses the barriers that need to be removed to make the hiring process easier. She also shares her perspective on the impact of better hiring practices on quality of care.

Skilled Nursing News: What career experiences do you most draw from in your role today?

Laura Cambria: I started my career as a physical therapist in neurological rehab, and I’ve been a treating physical therapist for about 15 years. I really dove into traumatic brain injuries as a treating therapist, and I absolutely loved it. One of the pieces that I loved was my ability to change individuals’ lives. They had been through these very traumatic incidents and I got to help them recover. Part of that was the interaction with families and caregivers. I was able to help better train our caregivers to care for these individuals amidst a massive life event.

I then pivoted my career into senior living and moved into the operations side. I worked in the dementia care space and really focused on the frontline staff, which is something KARE is very passionate about. Frontline staff are such an important piece of caring for our seniors, and being able to develop that relationship with caregivers sets KARE apart from other staffing solutions. The more that we can do for our caregivers and the more we understand their needs, the better seniors are cared for. That’s where my real passion comes from.

Can the recruitment of caregivers be centralized to decrease the hiring process timeframe?

Yes, it absolutely can. But community leaders have to adapt what they’re utilizing in this time period. The industry has changed, so leaders need to look at technological advances. With the use of technology, some of the process can be streamlined. KARE does that by centralizing recruitment right there on the platform. We’ve done all of the time-consuming background work for the operator, putting all of a prospect’s information at their fingertips.

How can we ensure operators are hiring accountable candidates that will be a good fit for their facility?

Communities need to have a workforce that’s accountable and reliable. One of the ways KARE achieves this is by having a rating and review system for nurses and caregivers on our platform (we call them KARE Heroes). Vice versa, the caregivers also get to rate the community. That mutually beneficial, equitable relationship, is where KARE sees a lot of success. We have to be stricter about accountability measures, and this offers both internal staff and community members a way to uphold them. Another layer of accountability that KARE offers is our proprietary Reliability Score. In a recent study KARE conducted, a caregiver’s Reliability Score was the most influential part of hiring a KARE HERO. .

What barriers need to be removed to make the hiring process easier?

The toughest thing about the hiring process is the length of time it takes. It’s a long process. When a position opens,it takes time to post for the position, filter the candidates and make the phone call to a frontline caregiver, who most likely is working another job. Even the communication alone takes a lot of time, effort, and resources.

If recruiting can be centralized so individuals are already vetted and ready to go, it decreases that timeframe and people can start working faster, ultimately taking care of seniors in a timelier fashion.

Can operators increase focus on management-level training if they have the frontline staff more readily available?

In senior living specifically, there is an increased focus on spending more time taking care of our management-level staff. By honing in on the management level, seniors will receive better care. What’s happening today is that, at the management level, the staff can’t get out of that frontline position they formerly held before being promoted. People are constantly being promoted from frontline positions, to management, and they can’t fully get out of the responsibilities of their former role. They cannot fully transition because there is so much work that needs to be done on the frontline.

If managers can strictly focus on their management duties, the balance is going to be much better. KARE has those frontline Heroes ready to work. The goal should be to put the focus on the management staff, bring in the frontline caregivers, and let management do the job of managing. This will keep managers happier, you’re going to have less turnover and less burnout at that level, and KARE can supply the nurse and caregiver staff for you.

Would our seniors be provided with better care if there was easier access to quicker hiring?

Yes, it’s a no-brainer. We talked about how long the hiring process takes, which can be anywhere from 30 to 45 days, and that’s a generous estimate. If somebody puts in a two-week resignation, there is at minimum a one-month gap between that resignation and a new hire. The people who are suffering during that time are your management-level staff, the remaining frontline staff, and of course, the seniors who need the caregivers’ help. If we can speed that process up, seniors will absolutely receive better care.

KARE’s centralized staffing makes it possible to close those gaps today. The caregivers are easily accessible, and providers can hire a KARE HERO if they’re a good fit for the community. Operators can bring the HERO in on a PRN status, fill those positions, help take care of the seniors, and then hire that HERO for free. That is something that we absolutely recommend. We strive to have that. We need to keep people working in the field and taking care of America’s seniors.

Finish this sentence: “In the skilled nursing industry, 2023 will be the year of…?”

…consistent adaptation.

Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

KARE is a platform that empowers post-acute caregivers to earn extra income and manage their own flexible schedules, while helping senior care communities decrease their operating costs by reducing high overtime wages and eliminating costly staffing agencies To learn more, visit https://www.doyoukare.com/for-communities/.

The Voices Series is a sponsored content program featuring leading executives discussing trends, topics and more shaping their industry in a question-and-answer format. For more information on Voices, please contact [email protected].