If you are an owner of a nursing home who has received low scores in meeting high- quality standards in staffing, you can take a couple tips from high-ranking <a title=Florida nursing homes at Great Places! rel="nofollow" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/article_exit_link');" href= >Florida nursing homes</a> and <a title=California nursing homes at Great Places! rel="nofollow" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/article_exit_link');" href= >California nursing homes</a> who have found the recipe for success! Here are five key helpful tips your nursing home can use that award winning nursing homes in Florida and California use to continue to keep their staff and keep their staff happy.

1. Never Underestimate Education and Ongoing Training For Your Staff
Training your staff when they are first hired is essential. Taking the time to further their education and training can’t be overstated. Each year, there are new rules and regulations that are adopted or instated by the state that must be followed. Refresher CPR, EMT and other important health classes should always be offered. When dealing with the elderly, disabled or terminally ill patients, the best nursing homes’ staff are all up to date on their classes and have the option for continuing their education.

2. Communication is Key
Successful nursing homes tend to have excellent means of communication to keep everyone on the same page. When everyone feels like they are apart of the program, they feel respected, that their work matters and they will do a better job at work.
• Daily log books
• Weekly and bi-weekly meetings
• Open agendas and calendars- every scheduled activity open to everyone

3. Rewarding and Recognizing
Keeping morale up at work is so important. Giving credit when credit is due isn’t that hard to do and it’s amazing how a little can go a long way. "Employee of the month", "most outstanding nurse" and other titles of recognition, even if it is not displayed on a wall, is very important to help keep spirits up. When you reward great work, you will get great work in return.

4. Involvement at Every Level
Managers, executives and people who own the nursing home need to be involved at every level. The people who pay the bills and salaries of he staff need to make face-time with the staff that is running the show. When top people are all hands off, it shows disconnect and lack of interest. Successful nursing homes have involvement at every level, to not only show respect to the hardworking staff, but to know what is going on day to day. Besides making sure that everything is going smoothly and that people are content with their jobs, this is also an important means of fixing problems that often go unnoticed or unmentioned; like a broken door, a sink that is not working or other small repairs that people can surely work around, but shouldn’t go unmentioned and should be fixed.

5. Create a Reason For Everyone to Be Invested
Lastly, when workers are invested in their job, they work harder and feel a need to do a better job. If they feel that what they do at work matters and they feel appreciated, you’d be surprised at what a dramatic difference that makes.
• Are you giving your staff enough responsibility? Do you show that you trust them to do their job?
• Giving your staff the authority to do "what they think is the best way" will often prove huge results in doing a great job and probably better than you would expect

Training, communication and trust are all ingredients to running a smooth operation. When your staff feels respected, they will in-turn respect you, thus, respect their job and the people they work for and with.