Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
causes of nursing shortage essay
causes of nursing shortage essay
reason for nursing shortage
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: causes of nursing shortage essay
Georgia M. Stead Writ 331 5 May, 2014 The Global Nursing Shortage According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Registered Nursing is listed among the top occupations in terms of job growth through 2022, with the demand increasing at least 19% by the year 2022 (2012). Particularly in the past decade, there is a serious shortage in the number of nurses to fill the vast amount of open positions available. Why is there such a shortage in the nursing profession, and is the nursing shortage real in this type of economy? Unexpectedly, there are many unemployed nurses today, struggling to find employment. An MPR news article by Annie Baxter stated that she had interviewed many unemployed nurses that claim the shortage is just a myth. She goes on to say “as the recession hit, people used health care less, promoting hospitals to hire fewer nurses” (2012). This information couldn’t be further from the truth. The health care industry is at an all-time high right now and there are a plethora of nursing opportunities out there. The nursing shortage is very real, and the misconception lies in the fact that hospitals are requiring a higher level of education than previously. You might ask, if there is such a shortage, why would they be more selective in their criteria? Due to the shortage, nurses are being forced to be more responsible in their work, more independent, work longer hours, and manage an unfavorable amount of patients at a time. This demanding work is requiring hospitals to become more selective in the types of nurses they hire (Aiken L.H., 2011). In this presentation, I will thoroughly explain these growing issues, how the unavailability of a nursing education is the main reason there is a global nursing shortage today, and voice m... ... middle of paper ... ... Amid Calls for More Highly Educated Nurses. http://www.aacn.nche.edu/news/articles/2012/enrollment-data. Baxter, A., 2012. Nursing Shortage Largely a Myth for Job Seekers, MPR News. 11, May 2012. Buerhaus P.I, Auerbach D.I, & Staiger D.O., 2009. The Recent Surge in Nurse Employment: Causes and Implications. Health Affairs, 28 (4): 657-658. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor (2014), Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-15 Edition, Registered Nurses, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/registered-nurses.htm National League for Nursing, 2012. Research and Grants. http://www.nln.org/researchgrants/slides/viewall_1112.htm#1 Needleman, J., Buerhaus, P., Pankratz, S., Leibson, C.L, Stevens S.R. & Harris M., 2011. Nurse Staffing and Inpatient Hospital Mortality, the New England Journal of Medicine, 364:1037-1045, DOI: 10.1056/NEJMsa1001025
Nevidjon, B., & Erickson, J. (31 January, 2001). The Nursing Shortage: Solutions for the Short
American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Nursing shortage fact sheet. Washington, DC; 2012 Aug 6. http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/NrsgShortageFS.pdf
One of the few careers left in the United States that is said to be everlasting, seems to be getting a taste of reality. What once was a thriving career has steadily begun to struggle with a call to arms. Hospitals around the world are finding that the need for nurses is increasing as new nurse graduates are decreasing. Nursing schools are unable to produce enough new graduates to meet the need. Which causes a need for adequate instructors with the knowledge necessary to educate nursing students. Even with the rate of nurses graduating each year with Bachelors and Associates, why are we in such a drastic need for nurses? Has the population and illness increased so fast that our current nurses are not able to keep pace? Many researchers have attempted to figure out what may be causing this need. This need for nurses is vital to patient care and outcome, but we still lack consensus. The question that has been asked since the 1980s with no resolution.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, “Registered Nurses”, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm, 17 Dec. 2009. Web. 09 March. 2012.
The term “nursing shortage” is not new to America. In fact, the United States has
Since the 1990’s, the interest in nursing and the profession as a whole has decreased dramatically and is still expected to do so over the next 10-15 years according to some researchers. With this nursing shortage, many factors are affected. Organizations have to face challenges of low staffing, higher costs for resources, recruiting and reserving of registered nurses, among liability issues as well. Some of the main issues arising from this nurse shortage are the impact of quality and continuity of care, organizational costs, the effect it has on nursing staff, and etc. However, this not only affects an organization and community, but affects the nurses the same. Nurses are becoming overwhelmed and are questioning the quality of care that each patient deserves. This shortage is not an issue that is to be taken lightly. The repercussions that are faced by both nurses and the organization are critical. Therefore, state funding should be implemented to private hospitals in order to resolve the shortage of nurses. State funds will therefore, relieve the overwhelming burdens on the staff, provide a safe and stress free environment for the patient, and allow appropriate funds needed to keep the facility and organization operational.
“REGISTERED NURSES AND NURSE PRACTITIONERS.” Labor Market Information. 2002. Employment Development Department. 12 Feb 2008 http://www.calmis.cahwnet.gov./file/occguide/NURSEREG. HTM.
“Registered Nurses.” U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics. United States Department of Labor, 8 Jan. 2014.
Patient’s safety will be compromised because increase of patient to nurse ratio will lead to mistakes in delivering quality care. In 2007, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) conducted a metanalysis and found that “shortage of registered nurses, in combination with increased workload, poses a potential threat to the quality of care… increases in registered nurse staffing was associated with a reduction in hospital-related mortality and failure to rescue as well as reduced length of stay.” Intense workload, stress, and dissatisfaction in one’s profession can lead to health problems. Researchers found that maintaining and improving a healthy work environment will facilitate safety, quality healthcare and promote a desirable professional avenue.
Job dissatisfaction is four times higher for nurses than the average rate for all workers in the United States, and one in five nurses report that they intend to quit their jobs within a year. (Martin, 2015) The main reason for this job dissatisfaction is that nurse staffing is simply insufficient in almost all healthcare facilities. Inadequate nurse staffing is when the number of patients in a healthcare facility is far higher than the number of nurses, and nurses are not able to provide quality care. This has a negative effect on not only the nurses, but the patients as well. Inadequate nurse staffing leads to an increase in adverse patient events and patient mortality rates that could be avoided with an adequate amount of nurse
Factors such as, heavy workloads, stress, job dissatisfaction, frequent medical errors, and intention of leaving the job are all common for nurses to experience, especially during the nursing shortage crisis. Not only do the nurses suffer during a shortage, but the patients ' health outcomes suffer even more. For instance, there are higher rates of infectious diseases and adverse patient outcomes, such as urinary tract infections (UTIs), upper gastrointestinal bleeding, shock, pneumonia, prolonged hospital stays, failure to rescue, and mortality. As a result, this leads to higher re-admission rates for patients. Furthermore, high patient-to-nurse ratios cause heavy workloads due to an inadequate supply of nurses, an increased demand for nurses, a reduction in staffing and an increase in overtime, and a shortened length of stay for patients. Without the heavy workloads that nurses have to endure on a daily basis, there would more time for nurses to communicate more effectively with physicians, insurance companies, and patients and their families. Those heavy workloads are the result of hospitals reducing the nursing staff and implementing mandatory overtime policies just to meet unexpectedly high demands. Unfortunately, the nursing shortage has affected nurses ' mental and physical health. For example, the most common health concerns for nurses include cardiovascular health, occupational injuries and illnesses, and emotional and physical exhaustion. Therefore, safe-staffing ratios/levels have to become the main
There are numerous divisions in the nursing field, there are: registered nurse, nurse practitioner, certified nurse-midwife, clinical nurse specialist, etc. Registered nurses
Resop Reilly, Janet E. "Public Health Nursing Shortage." American Journal of Nursing 111.7 (2011): 11-13. Print.
In the early 1950s, a becoming a nurse was considered to be more voluntary than vocational. Nurses would make the beds, smile in the faces of the patients and check temperatures. This is not the case today, they play a major role in our health care and we should no longer take them for granted. Registered Nurses are the largest group of health care professionals in the United States and there is a massive shortage nationwide, especially in Texas. In 2006 Texas was reported to have over 146,000 Registered Nurses; this is only around 609 nurses per 100,000 residents, as opposed to the national statistic of 782 per 100,000. (Ogle, 2006). In trying to examine the causes for the shortages in Texas, we will look at the reason for the lack in supply and demand, as well as discuss how a nurse’s pay is determined and how their salary is structured.
Nursing is one of the most trusted professions in the United States. Given the task to care for the sick. Having a career in nursing leaves you with a mental satisfaction knowing you make a difference in somebody life on the daily basis. With such high standards, nurses like any other profession have rewards and challenges. Nurses have the ability to enjoy broad career opportunities, flexibility, and support for career development. The nurse profession is currently facing a problem with recruitment and retention of an adequate number of Registered Nurses staying at their place of employment.