Undoubtedly, the two seminal challenges of hospice operation are acquiring patients, and finding great nurses. There is tremendous competition for both.
According to a U.S. government study, by the year 2020, there could be a nationwide shortage of up to one million nurses. Head hunter costs are a third of a nurse annual salary, plus a retainer fee, usually $10,000.00. Hospices in Fort Worth are paying newspaper ad rates and entering expensive job forums.
Of the different types, hospice nurses are perhaps the most difficult to find. It is not known as a glamour position, like staffing the surgical ICU. Hospice nurses enjoy schedule autonomy and unique patient fellowship, that which they gained when entering a patient’s home and ministering from the side of the deathbed.
What makes a great hospice field nurse? Although technical proficiency (clinical and charting) is required, great nurses exhibit parental devotion. Raw expertises, devoid of love, are like uncomfortable shoes; they might keep the feet dry, but the experience is uncomfortable.
Finally, let me 
comment on our latest challenge, that of finding a Director of Nurses (DON). This person must possess leadership and nursing skills, not to mention tremendous organizational ability, and, what Buckingham’s Finding Your Strengths describes as "command." Oh, and did I mention computer know-how, and the ability to converse directly with the owner and the clinical team. This is a super-person. Please call me if you are out there!
