For working parents, raising children is something they always have to balance. Even if you’re lucky enough to find a daycare center that fits your schedule, there’s still the issue of cost. For many parents, it’s a decision between paying for childcare and other necessities. Striking this balance is often even more difficult, especially for healthcare professionals.
For many healthcare workers, child care costs eat into their paychecks, and schedule constraints can force them to make difficult choices between staying home with their children or taking time off from work to provide lifesaving care. It could mean that we can’t provide it to those who need it. . This daily reality is often the beginning of burnout, followed by turnover, and ultimately leading to workforce shortages and lack of access to care. This issue demands our attention, especially in Idaho, which already faces a significant shortage of health care workers.
Kaniksu Community Health provides patient-centered care in rural North Idaho. In some cases, you may be the only provider with miles available. But like many parts of the state, the state faced a severe shortage of health care workers. Our leadership team conducted an employee survey and learned that child care is one of the biggest barriers to attracting and retaining quality staff. So they decided to do something about it.
Investing in Idaho’s Future: Critical Needs for Early Learning Support
I was brought in to open and run Canics Kids Club, an on-site childcare center that can make a difference for healthcare workers and the community at large. We believe that foster care is more than just a place to keep children safe; we want children to grow, learn, thrive, and receive quality early childhood education while their parents work hard to care for others. We have confirmed that it is a place where you can receive the following. All this at very low prices compared to local childcare rates.
A grant from the Idaho Workforce Development Council allowed them to open their doors to 20 children about three years ago. We began providing a safe, nurturing and educational environment for the children of our organization’s employees. Currently, we are serving 50 children, prioritizing health care workers.
Thankfully, our CEO is focused on delivering this benefit, not profit, and that changes the game completely. We have been able to provide affordable care, hire people who are passionate about children, and operate at a break-even level. Adding on-site child care to our suite of employee benefits has become a valuable recruiting tool and has significantly increased employee retention and satisfaction, reducing our turnover rate from 38 percent to just 19 percent. decreased.
Childcare is just one of the reasons healthcare workers leave the field. We found a solution in Canics, but our health care system is in crisis across the state. Leaders in child care, education, housing, health care, government and parliament need to come together to address the shortcomings of the current system.
A creative solution to one of these challenges, such as childcare, can help solve multiple problems at once. The health and well-being of Idaho’s children, families, and workers depend on it. Ultimately, so is the health of all Idahoans. Let’s work together to find solutions, not just for today, but for the future of our community.
Get your morning headlines.
