"The social determinants of health and health-related social needs...it's not just health they impact. It really is the ability to be successful in your occupation."

When Dr. Lindsay B. Schwartz, Ph.D., FGSA, completed graduate school, she knew there was more to workforce care than simply the pay: childcare, housing, and even January oil changes in the colder parts of the country. With half of direct care workers on public assistance, how can a crisis of this magnitude be managed? During this episode of Nurse to Nurse, Dr. Schwartz joins Mandy and Gwen for an in-depth discussion on the topic of workforce shortages, pay discrepancies, and how to bolster benefits packages.

Featured in this episode:

• How do we support the people who provide the care?
• Rethinking what meaningful employee benefits look like.
• Addressing workforce challenges beyond wages.
• Connecting employees with existing support resources.
• Building a stronger, more sustainable long-term care workforce.

AALNA's website: https://alnursing.org/

"The most powerful technology in memory care will never be artificial intelligence. It will always be the human heart and the informed human judgment that knows how to use it wisely."

That's how Dr. Schekesia Meadough approaches the integration of AI in assisted living, along with the ethical, regulatory, and liability considerations that are associated with it. In this episode of Nurse to Nurse, Dr. Meadough joins Mandy and Gwen for a discussion about rapidly evolving AI technology and its place in assisted living and memory care.

Featured in this episode:

• The importance of including nurses and frontline workers when making decisions about technology.
• Why technology should be assessed in a pilot before a full rollout.
• The intersection of technology and regulatory/privacy concerns.
• Understanding the benefits and limitations of AI in assisted living.
• How AI can help detect early risk in residents.

AALNA's website: https://alnursing.org/

"The biggest lie we've ever been told inside senior living is that 100% is enough. It's not enough. We're never going to stay at 100%"

That's how leadership coach, speaker, and 100% Leader cofounder Erin Thompson describes the illusion of "100%" in senior living. In this episode of Nurse to Nurse, Mandy and Gwen are joined by Erin and fellow 100% Leader cofounder Aaron Fish. The conversation explores the transformative power of the "100% Leader" philosophy, discusses how reframing leadership as a mindset rather than a metric can enhance team performance and resident care, and touches on leadership and communication gaps in senior living.

Highlights of this episode:

• Steps leaders can take to empower nurses in senior living.
• Learning from our failures and that going into "hero mode" is not a viable solution.
• Exploring and implementing the "80/20" rule.
• Discussing the Senior Living Leaders Playbook and how it can help industry professionals.
• Understanding the varying communication dialects of senior living as a relationship business.

Visit https://the100percentleader.com/ for more information about the program.

AALNA's website: https://alnursing.org/