Marquessa Goodwin Mary Bays English Composition II ENG 1123 Strategies to Address the Nursing Staffing Shortage In healthcare, there is an issue of nursing staff shortage that poses a peril to efficiency and care availability. The shortage emanates from concerns such as an aging workforce, a surge in patient volume, and high turnover rates. The issue requires a combined effort to be solved efficiently (Finkelman 21). Different strategies can be adopted by healthcare entities, educational institutions, and policymakers to solve this challenge. This essay will discuss how refining recruitment, enhancing retention programs, education and training, and leveraging technology can play a critical role in addressing the nursing staffing shortage. Enhancing …show more content…
Enhancing Retention Programs The stability of the nursing workforce and turnover can be improved by strengthening the programs for nursing retention. Based on the analysis and identified gaps, it is concluded that healthcare organizations should pay more attention to the development of coherent retention bundles that cover not only the professional characteristics of nurses but also their illness concerns (Finkelman 24). This includes remunerations that are at par with market trends, a comprehensive benefits structure, and well-defined promotion strategies. For instance, continuing education support, professional mentorship, and leadership development programs are some of the strategies that could maintain the interest of nurses in their positions. Expand Education and Training The recruitment and retention of more students in educational institutions, leading to the production of more qualified persons in the nursing field, is another approach to addressing the …show more content…
Also, interesting strategies can be used to encourage potential students to finance their tuition, such as tuition reimbursement and loan forgiveness. Leverage Technology Technology is a good mechanism that can be used as a tool to minimize the deficiency in nursing personnel through enhancing efficiency, expanding the capacity of the staff in existence, and enhancing the lives of the patients. Take, for example, the use of telemedicine solutions to help nurses assess and treat clients using the internet, a capacity that increases their reach in the number of clients to treat. The strategy can focus on applying artificial intelligence and automation in documentation, appointment setting, and initial screening and assessment so that patients are attended to by nurses with more meaningful tasks in between (Britnell 16). The adoption of technologies, such as the EHRs, has removed the barriers of communication and time spent on paperwork so that more time can be channeled toward patient
Staffing Shortages in Healthcare Staffing shortages in healthcare represent a significant challenge, leading to increased workloads for existing staff and potentially compromising the quality of patient care. This issue spans various healthcare settings, including hospitals, long-term care facilities, and outpatient clinics. The shortage of nurses and other healthcare professionals often results in higher nurse-to-patient ratios, jeopardizing patient safety and care quality. Several factors have
These articles have many similarities when discussing the issue of staffing shortages. For patients, their loved ones and the general population, they don’t understand the ramifications and strain that staffing shortages have on nurses. People expect and deserve complete, competent and safe care when they are patients. These articles bring to light all the struggles that nurses have to deal with. Nurses are fearful that they will make mistakes, will harm patients, and will harm themselves. (Bae
Financial Impact The nursing shortage in the healthcare setting, can result in decreased quality of care with the patient and this can have a significant impact on the financial aspect of the organization. As time changes, there are more acute illnesses being presented in the hospital as a result of the patient prolonging to seek medical treatment. The delay in seeking medical treatment often stems from the patient not having health insurance and seeking home remedies as an alternate method of
Background on Nurse Staffing Nurse staffing and how it relates to the quality of patient care has been an important issue in the field of nursing for quite some time. This topic has been particularly popular recently due to the fact that there is an increasing age among those who make up the Baby Boomer era in the United States. There will be a greater need for nurse staffing to increase to help accommodate the higher demand of care. Although nursing is “the top occupation in terms of job growth
Nursing Shortage Affecting Both Nurse and Patient Ansu Sam York College CUNY Introduction One of the main reasons that makes patient safety goals impossible is nurse staff shortage. Nurses shortage is of primary importance, unlike many other health care professionals because of their direct interaction with susceptible patients throughout their stay in the health care settings. They track a patient’s condition continuously and are the first to know about any serious health conditions
appropriate number of mixed nursing staff, RN/LPN/CNA, is critical to the delivery of quality patient care. Many studies reveal an association between a higher level of experienced RN staffing and lower rates of adverse patient outcomes (“Nurse staffing plans,” 2013). The nurse-patient ratios will in turn improve the nurses working conditions, decreasing the risk of errors to patients. The first step is for the hospitals to have a nurse driven staffing committee, which will create staffing plans that reflect
During my time in practice placement I worked on an elderly dementia ward I noticed there was a lot of shortage in staffing levels. Registered nurses had to work overtime as there were not many qualified on the ward; there was also a shortage of healthcare assistance on most of the shifts I witnessed. At times I felt like a burden to the nursing staff, there were times when I felt the need to ask a question but the nurses were so busy and snowed under with paper work and attending to the patients
Are Nursing Shortages Linked to Patients Quality of Care? In most aspects of life the saying “less is always more” may ring true; however when it comes to providing quality care to patients, less only creates problems which can lead to a decrease in patient’s quality of life as well as nurse’s satisfaction with their jobs. The massive shortage of nurses throughout the United States has gotten attention from some of the most prestigious schools, news media and political leaders. Nurses are being
With the ongoing changes in the healthcare field, nursing workforce retention presents itself as one of the greatest challenges facing healthcare systems today. According to the American Nursing Association, nursing turnover is a multi-faceted issue which impacts the financial stability of the facility, the quality of patient care and has a direct affect on the other members of the nursing staff (ANA, 2014). The cost to replace a nurse in a healthcare facility ranges between $62,100 to $67,100 (ANA
Nursing Shortage is a problem we all should be aware of. There are many factors that may lead to a nursing shortage, such as having stressful and unsafe working environments, and our nurses are being overworked. This is a problem we should be aware of because it is affecting the patient care. Nurses would not have enough time to stay with a patient if they have more patients to worry about. Nurses play a big role in our hospitals and communities, “Nurses play significant roles in hospitals, clinics
In the nursing world, situations and environmental factors can negatively affect patient outcomes. This nurse feels that errors mostly occur when staff is overworks and understaffed. When a nurse is in a hurry and there is no one to help out, errors occur. Another cause for a delay in treatment would be nursing high turnover rate. With high turn over rates come inexperienced nurses related to that specific unit. Staffing can influence the delayed in treatment in an emergency department. According
factors relating to nurse burnout in correlation to nurse to patient ratio. Nurse to patient ratio is a serious issue that needs to be addressed in the nursing community. States nationwide and countries around the world need to make staffing guidelines that are mandated and enforced. Many of the factors that can affect nurse burnout are staffing guidelines (nurse to patient ratio), mandated shifts, overtime, and many more. Through all of the different articles and research some common themes concluded
One of the major critical issues in nursing is mandatory overtime and nurses are being required to work long hours, doubles or extended shifts. Working mandatory overtime causes short staffing and leads to medical mistakes. In this paper we are going to talk about how this is an issue of concern for the nursing practice and health care delivery. Mandatory overtime is a major issue that is impacting nursing practice. It is impacting the practice in a very bad way. Nurses describe mandatory overtime
along with nurse’s mental health. Nursing Burnout and Compassion Fatigue The issues of nursing burnout and compassion fatigue are an important one in part, because of the ongoing nursing shortage across the united states. Per the American colleges of nursing “the U.S. is projected to experience a shortage of Registered Nurses (RN’s) that is expected to intensify as Baby Boomers age and the need for health care grows” (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2017). The ACA fact sheet cites
Nursing Shortage is a problem we all should be aware of. There are many factors that may lead to a nursing shortage, such as having stressful and unsafe working environments, and our nurses are being overworked. This is a problem we should be aware of because it is affecting the patient care. Nurses would not have enough time to stay with a patient if they have more patients to worry about. Nurses play a big role in our hospitals and communities, “Nurses play significant roles in hospitals, clinics