- Each year, new immigrants come to the US and new generations are multiplying thus we see a steady growth in the population. Along with this, there is an increase in the need for health care. The health care industry and new technology continues to expand proportionally to meet the increasing health care needs of the community.
- The cost of health care and health care insurance coverage or managed care-issues such as, only the very sick will need to be hospitalized, shifts delivery of patient care in the hospital to the community.
- More skilled nursing and specialized care nursing are expanding that require more newly trained RNs and health care staff to managed these new trends in health care and delivery of patient care.
- According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the 6-year period of low enrollments in nursing programs has ended and now there is an increase in enrollment in 2005 in spite of some students not being accepted into programs because of lack of nursing educators.
- On the other hand, skilled nurses are very marketable and can pick, choose and refuse their work environment. Some want to get away from the stressors of bedside nursing and choose to be entrepreneurs, while more and more nurses are getting more educated and trained as advanced practice nurses, thus also causing a shift from bedside-nursing to more autonomous, expanded roles, of professionally enriched nursing practice.
The monthly schedule is due again. It is so difficult to balance the staffing schedule. There are not enough nurses to cover the unit or enough to cover for the nurses on medical, maternity, or personal/family leave. Nurses need to go for special training, seminar or continuing education and personnel is needed to cover for them while they are out. Spring is coming, and nurses will start taking vacation time that will peak during the summertime because although they have the entire year to consume their vacation time or lose them, most staff choose to take vacation in the summer. These are some of the scenarios that a first-line manager faces to ensure that there are enough nurses to take care of patients and balance the monthly schedule. But, where are the nurses? Is this nursing shortage a real issue? How long will this last? What is the real deal?
Some alarming statistics
According to reports from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, in six years time (2012), a million new nurses will be needed to replace the aging workforce. The Government’s Accounting Office says that 40 percent of all RNs will be over 50 years old in four years (2010) and will start the retirement movement. It might even be accelerated if the baby boomers start to become more overwhelmed by the constant aggravation and stress that they have to endure in the work arena. Constantly disgruntled by an increase in patient to nurse ratio, lack of respect in the work area, increasing acuity of the patient, lack of support services; lack of functioning equipment or supplies; inflexible working hours or schedule; and perhaps less benefit and salary are all issues that have nurses leaving in droves. By 2020, as these baby boomers retire, it is projected that there will be a 20% drop in workforce availability.
In long-term care facilities, it is also alarming to know that there are nearly 100,000 nursing position vacancies according to the National Commission on Nursing Workforce for Long-Term Care Study. In addition, there is an increase in the turnover rate of 50% that is costing about $4 billion dollars a year to recruit and train new healthcare staff.
In 2002, a national poll conducted by the Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s School of Nursing and Center for Health Services Research in Nashville, Tennessee, 81% of Americans recognized that there is a nursing shortage and 65% believed that this is a major problem or a crises in health care system. The study also revealed that 93% agreed that this nursing shortage will affect the health care in the US and those who are age 55 and older are concerned on the implications of this shortage to health care system.
What is causing the shortage other than the aging workforce?
Yes, nursing shortage is real but is there a real lack of nurses? What do you think? Please send me e-mail and your thoughts or comments.
To read more about nursing shortage, visit or click on these articles:
Facts on the Nursing Shortage in North America
Managing the Health Care Professional by Charles McConnell, MBA, CM
This book is a good resource that will give some guide and wisdom that goes beyond the standard management theory on professionalism and staff retention.
