Former Virginia Secretary of Health Bill Hazel said the problematic shortages of healthcare professionals is a known problem in the industry, but disasters are often required for people to work to address it.
Those tragedies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, bring awareness to the shortage of workers in medical fields. However, often after those situations end, the industry returns to the status quo and avoids systemic change.
A recent report reaffirmed the problem, which said the Roanoke, Lynchburg and New River Valley areas need 9,015 additional healthcare workers to meet demand. Elsewhere in Virginia, another 47,298 healthcare professionals are needed. That includes registered nurses, social and human service assistants, physical therapists, radiologic technologists and technicians, licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses, nursing assistants, mental health counselors and personal care aides.
The study also said the commonwealth needs speech-language pathologists, cardiovascular technologists and technicians, physician assistants, medical assistants, mental health and substance abuse social workers, psychiatric technicians and occupational therapy assistants.
“We could dip down into it and bicker a little bit about the numbers and what they mean and all, but there’s clearly a need in all of these areas — and there has been,” Hazel said. “This is not new.”
Hazel is a surgeon who served for eight years as the Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources under former Govs. Bob McDonnell and Terry McAuliffe. Now, he works as the CEO of Claude Moore Opportunities, a Northern Virginia-based nonprofit that funds workforce development programs. It was started by the Claude Moore Charitable Foundation, which funded a namesake educational center in Roanoke's Gainsboro neighborhood that houses Virginia Western Community College’s culinary arts program.
Hazel said the report outlines the scope of the problem and quantifies its size. The top line said the region needs 3,308 registered nurses, but it also provides insight on the other positions that are needed.
“An absence of an X-ray tech or an absence of an ultrasound tech could shut your hospital down,” he said.
Staffing shortages mean the healthcare workers on staff must stretch themselves to fill the gaps. More qualitative impacts exist that weren’t visible in the report.
“What happens is that if you’re short workforce, the nurses or the techs take extra shifts — and people start getting tired,” Hazel said. “The job satisfaction goes down. More people leave the workforce because of the extra stress. They are on constantly, because the hospitals generally don’t have the luxury of operating two shifts a day or one shift a day. They’ve got to be 24/7 in most areas. Also, the people who are most loyal tend to stay, and they tend to get burnt out. I think that’s one issue.
“Sometimes, for instance, if you don’t have an operating room team, you don’t operate. You don’t open an operating room if you’ve got all this equipment sitting that’s not being used, and patients get delayed. Those types of things are not uncommon with shortages.”
Carilion Clinic is the largest employer in the Roanoke region, with more than 10,000 people in its workforce. Roanoke’s economy is heavily dependent on the healthcare profession, which means the Star City could feel the effects differently than other jurisdictions.
“Why you all have such an issue is that healthcare is a major part of your economy there in Roanoke,” he said. “The hospital system is big; it’s got volume. It’s doing a lot of the high-end work. It means you need perhaps a different skill set or additional skill sets that you maybe don’t need in a smaller or more rural area.”
Hazel said the majority of healthcare employers provide upskilling, reskilling and benefit packages to try to retain workers. Then, he cited numerous potential solutions to address the shortage. For instance, one solution is to raise awareness that healthcare jobs exist aside from doctors and nurses, such as IT specialists, informaticists and lab technicians — many of which require qualifications that are easier to obtain than the top-line healthcare jobs. Additionally, many people who work in the military as a medic or corpsman wouldn’t have the licensing to work in civilian medicine, so bridge programs can support them in joining when they leave the armed forces.
“I think we have to let people know that there are lots and lots of options out there, and we’re looking for good, talented people to come into these fields,” Hazel said.
