Caroline Mascarenhas leads nurse staffing at Houston Methodist Cypress Hospital (HMCY). Set to open in 2025, HMCY aims to employ 770 staff initially, projected to grow to 3,000 by the end of 2025.
Given the post-COVID nursing landscape, staffing HMCY looked daunting. “Before the pandemic itself, there was emphasis on the health care workforce changing based on regulatory implications, on the administrative burdens of the frontline staff. Then the pandemic came and upended all of that,” said Mascarenhas. Many nurses across the state left the profession due to burnout or the lure of changing careers. Houston Methodist has crafted a strategy to attract and retain our nurses.
First, our leadership listened to staff to create a more supportive environment. Offering flexible schedules, mental health support and expanded childcare options became top priorities. Eventually, the turnover rate reduced from 32% during the pandemic to 10-11% (pre-pandemic levels). Our system defied national and state trends by increasing nursing staff from 7,127 to 9,559 by 2024–contrasting with a statewide decline of working registered nurses, from 81.9% to 76.6% between 2019 and 2022.
Coined as a “hospital of the future,” HMCY will be a tech hub. Virtual nursing, patient monitoring devices and rapid response teams will reduce nurses’ administrative burden, offering flexibility on and off the job. HMCY is setting a new standard, ensuring a bright future for our nurses.
Explore Houston Methodist career opportunities in Cypress today.
