By Meredith Gardner
meredith.gardner@theindependent.com

After traditional methods of recruitment and retention did little to alleviate the problem, the hospital's leadership knew it was time to break new ground.

So starting in 2000, St. Francis' human resource department began developing a number of new programs in an effort to better recruit and retain employees from all of its departments.

And during a training conference last year, one Illinois State University researcher took notice.

Now, St. Francis has become the subject of a case study led by two Illinois State University researchers on the hospital's workplace environment and its "innovative" means of encouraging employee loyalty.

At the conclusion of the research, both the hospital and the academic world may gain significant knowledge about organizational structure and identity, and St. Francis may be able to set itself apart from other health care organizations as a cutting-edge employer.

Gail Russ, an associate professor of business at Illinois State, said she quickly became interested in St. Francis after hearing examples of what it has done to combat its worker shortage issues.

After she met Lee Elliott, the hospital's vice president for human resources and fund development, during a Chicago conference last year, the two agreed it could be mutually beneficial for Russ to research St. Francis as an organization.