The Staff Recruitment and Retention Subcommittee is dedicated to increasing diverse representation and improving the climate of inclusivity as it relates to the recruitment and retention of staff at all levels. We further seek to improve the Department culture as it relates to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), with a top priority of establishing processes that will lead to long-term, sustainable gains in staff recruitment and retention.

Definition of staff

Staff are defined as non-faculty employees that work in the Department of Psychiatry within the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) and University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC). This includes counselors, psychologists, social workers, nurses, nursing support staff, peer specialists, occupational therapists, researchers, business teams, administrative teams, security, and more.

Needs assessments and priority areas

Last year, we conducted Division-based needs assessments, identified priority areas, and implemented targeted interventions to improve staff recruitment and retention. We focused primarily on recruitment actions, including the:

• development of new relationships and increased engagement with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and virtual job fairs
• increased engagement with local high schools and colleges for volunteer opportunities within the Department
• addition of a Diversity Statement to Department of Psychiatry position listings

Additional highlights

This past year, we also developed new Professional Advancement Models in select Divisions, offered an increased amount and variety of DEI educational opportunities for staff, increased participation in and advertisement of the UMMC Mentorship Program, and collected data on retention incentives.

We determined that it is essential to have a Human Resources investment from both the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and UMMC. We are seeking to add a representative from both entities to attend our subcommittee meetings and facilitate the implementation of retention initiatives in the coming year.

We also plan to develop a resource of retention initiatives available to Department of Psychiatry staff to facilitate use and incentivize retention.