Hospitals in Will, Grundy counties have nursing shortages.

Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part story looking at the nursing shortages in area hospitals.

COVID did not cause the present nursing shortage in Will County, which started more than 20 years ago.

But it has greatly exacerbated it.

A 2001 Herald-News story said the average age of registered nurses had moved from 44.3 to 45.2 between 1996 and 2000, according to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

Some of the reasons for the shortage in 2001 included more career opportunities for women, an increase in patients, and the expansion of hospital services as well medical services into satellite medical centers and home health care, the 2001 story said.

Other pre-pandemic contributing factors include a “shortage of nursing school faculty, nursing school enrollments that aren’t growing fast enough to meet the demand for registered nurses and advanced practice nurses; an aging population that requires more care; and a growing segment of the nursing population that’s nearing retirement age,” Debra Robbins, director of marketing and communications, said in an email on Tuesday.

Since the pandemic, some nurses retired early while others transitioned from caring for patients at the bedside into less-demanding nursing roles and others left health care altogether, Robbins said.

The existing shortage plus “a sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 cases” had led to longer wait times in Silver Cross’ emergency department, Robbins said.

However, Silver Cross has not closed any units and the hospital is “staffed safely and appropriately at all times,” Robbins said.

To address the shortages, Robbins said nurses pick up extra shifts “in high-volume areas” – the emergency department, intensive care unit, procedural care areas and general medical/surgical units – when extra help is needed.

Silver Cross also recently partnered with the Lewis University College of Nursing and Health Sciences to provide loan repayment support up to $27,000 for Lewis nursing graduates, providing they work at Silver Cross after graduation, Robbins said.

Robbins said Silver Cross encourages people who are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine and booster to receive one.

“With more individuals vaccinated, that will help relieve the added stress on hospitals and health care providers,” Robbins said.

Edward Hospital

Like other area hospitals, COVID compound the nursing shortage at Edward Hospital. Some nurses left health care altogether; some reduced their hours, according to Michelle Einfalt, system director, talent acquisition at Edward Hospital.

“COVID prompted some people to make life decisions, such as relocating to be close to family,” Einfalt said.

Edward Hospital in Naperville will occasionally use agency nurses but only in emergencies, Einfalt said.

“Our preference is still to hire people and train people internally to stay and we’ve done a really good job of that, too,” she said and later added. “The funny thing is that although we’ve had a shortage, we’ve been hiring at record high numbers.”

Since July 1, Edward-Elmhurst Health has experienced more 1,000 external hires across the board, not just in nursing, Einfalt said. Edward Hospital also offers its own accredited nurse residency program, as well a refer and sign-on bonuses, Einfalt said.

“We reward our own employees for referring people that they know … members and new hires receive sign-on bonuses,” Einfalt said.

Staff, including nurses, typically don’t eek employment elsewhere.

“I think that’s because we have a really strong culture,” Einfalt said. “We’re always willing to staff our own people. Once, they’re attained, they stay on with us long-term.

Edward also offers incentive pay to staff to pick up extra shifts. Staff who were already working internally received additional training and then were placed where needed, Einfalt said.

Nurses who worked for doctor’s offices but had hospital experience helped out, too, Einfalt said. None of that impacted doctor’s offices, Einfalt said.

“During COVID, we had a lot of out-patient nurses come in to care for patients and many decided to stay,” Einfalt said. “That was great for us.”

Not all extra shifts were clinical positions. Some staff were trained to help with housekeeping and food serve.

“All with training first,” Einfalt said.

Edward Hospital hasn’t closed any units and few staff left due to vaccine mandates. Einfalt said. Edwards Hospital has a 99% vaccine rate, Einfalt said. Edward-Elmhurst Health also has its own internal care team if staff need it, Einfalt said.

Einfalt said communication is key to retaining employees.

“One of the things we started at the beginning of COVID was town hall meetings,” Einfalt said. “People can dial in and hear from our physicians and leaders what’s happening with COVID within our systems.

Morris Hospital

Janet Long, public relations manager at Morris Hospital, said Morris Hospital, like many hospitals, has staffing shortages in many areas: registered nurses, certified nurse assistants, physical therapists, medical technologists and people to work in nutrition and environmental services, to name a few

“We’re constantly working on ways to attract people to Morris Hospital and were constantly putting new measure in place,” Long said. “We have not closed any services because of staffing shortage. That’s not too imply staffing shortages aren’t critical – they are – but we have not closed any services.”