By Cheryl Jahn

Audit Of Nursing Conducted By Auditor General

Feb 22, 2018 | 3:52 PM

VICTORIA — BC’s Auditor General has released a report of Northern Health’s recruitment of Registered Nurses.
Carol Bellringer found that, as of April 2017, Northern Health was short 121 RN’s and more than a quarter of rural and remote Nurse Practitioners were vacant.

The Auditor General lauded some good recruitment practices employed by Northern Health including a formal employee referral program, staff recognition programs, multiple targeted marketing campaigns, and student placements/clinical rotations at rural and remote locations.

“While there are influences outside of Northern Health’s control when it comes to recruiting and retaining nurses, there are factors that it can control and therefore, areas for improvement,” said Bellringer. 

The Auditor General’s office set out a series of nine recommendations:
1. That Northern Health, to create a more effective health human resource plan, consider a broad range of factors, including community characteristics, population health needs, scope of practice, stakeholder input and current circumstances.

2. That Northern Health work with communities and the provincial government to expand temporary and long-term affordable housing options in northern rural and remote communities.

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3. That the University of Northern British Columbia and the Ministries of Health and Advanced Education work with Northern Health and other key stakeholders to analyze the distribution of nursing education programs in the north and implement changes to address regional recruitment challenges.

4. That Northern Health continue to work with the British Columbia Nurses’ Union to develop and implement new recruitment and retention programs and tools for RNs in the north.

5. That Northern Health develop an RN recruitment strategy with clear goals and performance measures that guide its activities and enable it to assess progress.

6. That Northern Health establish clear responsibility for all aspects of its recruitment and hiring processes, including oversight.

7. That Northern Health ensure that all hiring managers receive comprehensive training on their recruitment and retention roles and responsibilities.

8. That Northern Health develop and implement a standard orientation process for RNs that can be adapted to meet the needs of diverse sites.

9. That Northern Health develop an RN retention strategy with clear goals and performance measures that guide its activities and enable it to assess progress.