It’s been more than two years since the advent of CoronaVirus Disease 2019 (COVID 19) which caused havoc globally. The Healthcare industry was highly affected, and the economic impact is still felt today. Nurses are leaving the bedside for advanced education and /or seeking higher compensation (traveling or agency). These behaviors cause a multitude of issues in terms of supply and demand. To pose a question, what can we do to mitigate this nursing shortage? Or better yet, what did our unit do to aid in the retention of our new hires? In 2020, our unit hired nine new nurses in-house to offset our staffing needs. These took a magnanimous effort to all designated preceptors and a nightmare for the charge nurses to make appropriate assignments. The end date of their orientation period was staggered depending on their start date to complete the 12th week orientation program. C8, a magnificent team, in my humble opinion, made an effort to celebrate the end of each new hire’s orientation period. The very first day that they worked on their own, we held a welcome party to celebrate their milestone, a “novice critical care nurse”. A brigade of text messages entails what to bring to coordinate the specifics and particulars of the party. Staff spent their hard-earned money to buy food and gifts for the occasion. In essence, what we are doing is making each one of them a part of our blended, diverse, and oftentimes dysfunctional family. Being a part of a closed-knit weave aids in retention. The simple gathering signifies a multitude of meanings to each staff member. Foremost is, that it gives them purpose and bridges a connection toward the establishment of a sense of belongingness.

Another staff initiative is the “Preceptor Night’s Out.” This event is geared toward cementing the developing relationship between the orientees and the preceptors. The unit has been doing this for almost three years now. This is an open invitation to all staff most especially the new hires and their designated preceptors. This is a perfect opportunity to unwind and welcome them into our fold outside the workplace.

Although our unit-based council is not active anymore, our education committee is very much alive. The Mini Critical Care symposium that was done annually was due in part to the efforts of the committee in collaboration with Katherine Waldo. Our monthly Journal club is still ongoing in spite of the pandemic. In terms of staff participation in the hospital projects and initiatives, I am in awe of our nurse’s active participation. The Foley champion born in C8 now breeds out as a hospital-wide initiative. Since C8 has the most number of nurses who hold a designation as Professional Advancement System (PAS) levels 1-5. We are the first line on call for hospital and community volunteers. Our community, hospital and educational volunteer hours were impressive. Actual numbers of hours are available from the PAS Committee Councilor, Mary Koch.

Our unit is known as party central not because we love food so much, but because we celebrate each other’s milestones. We send care packages to our co-workers who have recently had health challenges. Our celebration is not exclusive. Two respiratory therapists that we worked with got a retirement thrown by us. The physicians were part of our family as well. We celebrated their birthdays, baby showers, and engagement. Two weeks ago, we bid goodbye to our critical care pharmacist, Sunny. He was taken aback by our spontaneous gesture, he shed a tear or two.

These are just a few examples that come to mind. Even though our staff members are evolving, we stayed true to our commitment. We are a team, we are a family. The names of the C8 Staff who are actively involved in random order are the following; Ginaloy Lao-Lim, Sandra Adap, Ma. Asunción Caballar, Peachy Legayada,Rosabel Palete, Lorelie Obis, Cecille Dag-dag, Liberty Calusin, Christine Naso, Natalia Grullon, Grace Kim, Doroney Palmer, and Olivia Mertz.