Great Falls, like much of the country, is grappling with personnel shortages in both education and healthcare, with leaders in both professions citing burnout, shifting job demands, and the long-term effects of the COVID pandemic.
"The job is a hard job," stated Tom Cubbage, president of the Great Falls Education Association. “I started teaching more than 30 years ago. It’s a very different job.”
Quentin Shores reports - watch the video here:
According to Cubbage, educators nowadays are expected to take on many more responsibilities than in the past, including counseling and mental health support in addition to teaching.
"We're counselors, we're educators, but also mental health counselors sometimes," Cubbage told me. "Student behavior and the mental health of our students has become a bigger concern than it ever has been before."
During the epidemic, pupils missed important years of social development, which created additional obstacles in the classroom. At the same time, teachers say public perception can make the job much more difficult.
"When incidents with teachers that are not the best examples come to the forefront, we don't hear those great stories about the teachers who have changed kids' lives," Cubbage said.
Montana's historically low teacher pay has also been a factor. Not long ago, the state ranked 49th in the nation for teacher compensation, prompting some instructors to look for work elsewhere.
"With Montana, staffing shortages hit rural communities harder and faster," said Mark Robinson, CEO of Great Falls Clinic Hospital. "There's no doubt in my mind that Montana is probably getting hit harder than more metropolitan areas."
Healthcare is facing comparable issues, as personnel shortages worsened during the outbreak, with many workers leaving the field entirely.
"Post-COVID, there was a lot of burnout in healthcare staffing," According to Sarah Bearden, HR manager of Great Falls Clinic Hospital. "People have left the industry."
To adapt, the hospital has relied extensively on partnerships with nursing schools and post-graduate programs to attract new employees.
"The nursing schools coming into Great Falls have created a lot of opportunity," Bearden pointed out. "We've partnered with them to bring new grads on through our new grad programs."
Employees at Great Falls Clinic Hospital say retention has become as crucial as recruitment.
"We're focusing on being creative in human resources," Robinson remarked. "How we pay, how we hire, and how we give our employees a voice on a daily basis to make their environment better."
Education leaders also report that progress is being made. Cubbage highlights current efforts to improve school financing and teacher compensation across the state.
"We've started the process of improving teacher salaries in Montana and school funding," he informed us.
While staffing shortages persist, officials in both education and healthcare believe employee-first practices and long-term investment will be critical to keeping Great Falls' classrooms and hospitals open.
