COVID-19 was tough on everyone, but one of the hardest hit areas was post-acute. It was a scary time. Residents were struggling. Caregivers were leaving. Stress and burnout were rampant. Organizations were in survival mode—just trying to get through the day.

In the aftermath of the pandemic, post-acute is struggling with several realities. One, there’s a serious staffing shortage and high turnover. Two, morale continues to be low, in large part because of that short-staffing. Three, with the “Silver Tsunami” rolling our way, the difficulties we face are only going to increase.

The good news is, post-acute now has an opportunity to reinvent ourselves, rewire the processes and practices that aren’t working, and start turning our retention issue around. The first order of business is an investment in leadership. We need to develop local leaders and empower them to solve problems at the local level (which makes sense as they are closest to the issues).

Enter the Post-Acute Leadership Institute (PALI). It’s a new partnership between the leaders of the Post-Acute Executive HR Roundtable (industry veterans Tracy Jansen, Ed Goddard, Nick Porter, and Mark Bush) and the cofounders of Healthcare Plus Solutions Group^® (HPSG) (Quint Studer and Dan Collard).

This partnership is laser-focused on the unique needs of post-acute leaders. It’s a different world from acute care. The care environment is different. Also, the trust factor is even more crucial: When patients are in the hospital or having an outpatient procedure, a family member is with them, but in post-acute, this is not the case. That’s why we’re not taking leadership tools from the acute-care world and trying to make them work for post-acute. They’re personalized for this group of leaders.

Not only do they need to master the right skills, but the training must be cost-efficient and doable. We’ve narrowed the scope of leadership skills, so they can prioritize what matters most. We call it Precision Leader Development™. We’re developing leaders in a more personalized way based on their individual needs, learning styles, and experience. Finally, we’re instilling that crucial ownership mindset required to tackle problems locally rather than reporting them to corporate leaders.

Cumulatively, this will have a huge impact on leader retention and reduce the churn we’re experiencing. Imagine the impact this kind of leader will have on everyday operations, financial outcomes, and the reputation of post-acute! By creating healthier organizations, we can make sure our seniors have access to great care, both now and moving forward. We have the privilege to chart the course for what post-acute care will look like in the future.

The leaders of PALI (Studer, Collard, and the leaders of the Post-Acute Executive HR Roundtable) have just released a new book, Rewiring Leadership in Post-Acute Healthcare: Equipping Leaders to Succeed, that lays out many of their insights and tactics. You can also visit https://www.thepali.org/ or listen to the podcast “Rewiring Leadership in Post-Acute Healthcare: Introducing the Post-Acute Leadership Institute (PALI) with Nick Porter and Tracy Jansen” to learn more.

Interested in learning more? Contact  info@thePALI.org to listen to a 45-minute webinar recording, hosted by Dan Collard and Quint Studer (in partnership with the Post-Acute Executive HR Roundtable), on how PALI works for you, your leaders, and your organization. Or, reach out to set up a dedicated webinar for your leadership team with Quint, Dan, and the leaders of the Post-Acute Executive HR Roundtable.