*The video in this story was shot before the coronavirus pandemic, so the staff is not wearing masks. The hospital follows recommended COVID-19 protocol.
CHI Health Chief Medical Officer Cary Ward says when people think of hospitals they often think of clinical staff, but he wants to shed light on employees like housekeepers, sterile processing technicians and cooks.
"Food is very important to the healing process, food helps families while they are waiting for their loved ones to come out of the OR, part of the care team, the whole environment. It's different when you're in a hospital around people who serve," Ward said.
Hospitals always have openings for these positions, but the strain has been greater over the last year. There are 200 new employees that join CHI Health every two weeks.
"They are coming in the rooms, cleaning the rooms for the patients, talking to the patients, interacting with their families while doing their work, either serving their food or cleaning the room, helping address any issues they may have, it's very different than jobs in non-healthcare settings," Ward said.
James Taylor is the Franchise Owner of Snelling Staffing in Omaha, an agency that recruits for hospitals. He says the struggle is finding good, quality people.
"Unfortunately, there's a lot of good people on the sidelines, for whatever reason, they chose to stay on the sidelines maybe because of what the government is offering, maybe because they have family obligations, so those are the two issues we're seeing on a regular basis," Taylor said.
Ultimately, Ward hopes people find benefit in a workplace centered on healing, heart and caregiving.
"There's no reason why people who may start in any of these levels couldn't achieve, couldn't be president of a hospital one day," Ward said.
Overall, CHI Health has openings for more than a thousand employees. Here is a link to check them out.
