Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden
Staff management challenges in the healthcare system are inherently different during pandemic conditions than under normal circumstances. Surge capacity must be rapidly increased, particularly in the intensive care units (ICU), to handle the increased pressure, without depleting the rest of the syst...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Healthcare |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/10/2116 |
| _version_ | 1797473007033122816 |
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| author | Ritva Rosenbäck Björn Lantz Peter Rosén |
| author_facet | Ritva Rosenbäck Björn Lantz Peter Rosén |
| author_sort | Ritva Rosenbäck |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Staff management challenges in the healthcare system are inherently different during pandemic conditions than under normal circumstances. Surge capacity must be rapidly increased, particularly in the intensive care units (ICU), to handle the increased pressure, without depleting the rest of the system. In addition, sickness or fatigue among the staff can become a critical issue. This study explores the lessons learned by first- and second-line managers in Sweden with regard to staff management during the COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-methods approach was used, with preliminary qualitative interview (<i>n</i> = 38) and principal quantitative questionnaire (<i>n</i> = 272) studies, based on principal component and multiple regression analyses. The results revealed that the pandemic created four types of challenges relating to staff management: staff movement within hospitals; addition of external staff; addition of hours for existing staff through overtime and new shift schedules; and avoidance of lost hours due to sickness or fatigue. Furthermore, the effects of these managerial challenges were different in the first wave than in later waves, and they significantly differed between the ICU and other units. Therefore, a greater proactive focus on staff management would be beneficial in future pandemic situations. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:10:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d99b67ba74b04dde841a6907c1448d09 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9032 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:10:08Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Healthcare |
| spelling | doaj.art-d99b67ba74b04dde841a6907c1448d092023-11-24T00:22:10ZengMDPI AGHealthcare2227-90322022-10-011010211610.3390/healthcare10102116Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in SwedenRitva Rosenbäck0Björn Lantz1Peter Rosén2Department of Engineering Science, University West, 461 86 Trollhättan, SwedenDepartment of Engineering Science, University West, 461 86 Trollhättan, SwedenDepartment of Business Administration, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, SwedenStaff management challenges in the healthcare system are inherently different during pandemic conditions than under normal circumstances. Surge capacity must be rapidly increased, particularly in the intensive care units (ICU), to handle the increased pressure, without depleting the rest of the system. In addition, sickness or fatigue among the staff can become a critical issue. This study explores the lessons learned by first- and second-line managers in Sweden with regard to staff management during the COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-methods approach was used, with preliminary qualitative interview (<i>n</i> = 38) and principal quantitative questionnaire (<i>n</i> = 272) studies, based on principal component and multiple regression analyses. The results revealed that the pandemic created four types of challenges relating to staff management: staff movement within hospitals; addition of external staff; addition of hours for existing staff through overtime and new shift schedules; and avoidance of lost hours due to sickness or fatigue. Furthermore, the effects of these managerial challenges were different in the first wave than in later waves, and they significantly differed between the ICU and other units. Therefore, a greater proactive focus on staff management would be beneficial in future pandemic situations.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/10/2116hospital staffingsurge capacityCOVID-19 pandemichospital managershealthcare staffingmixed method |
| spellingShingle | Ritva Rosenbäck Björn Lantz Peter Rosén Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden Healthcare hospital staffing surge capacity COVID-19 pandemic hospital managers healthcare staffing mixed method |
| title | Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden |
| title_full | Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden |
| title_fullStr | Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden |
| title_full_unstemmed | Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden |
| title_short | Hospital Staffing during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden |
| title_sort | hospital staffing during the covid 19 pandemic in sweden |
| topic | hospital staffing surge capacity COVID-19 pandemic hospital managers healthcare staffing mixed method |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/10/2116 |
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