Nursing Shortage

It is no secret that the United States is currently experiencing a shortage of nurses . “The U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics ( 2009 ) estimated that more than one million new and replacement nurses will be needed by 2018 to meet the increased demands of the health care workforce” (). The stressful conditions under which nurses work, due in part to the nursing shortage, are among the risk factors that contribute to nurses’ abuse of illicit drugs and alcohol. Nurses are unique in that they work in an environment where they not only have access to controlled substances, but also are exposed to critically ill patients, traumatic situations, death and dying, the stress of which can increase the risk of substance abuse. (Epstein, Burns, & Conlon, 2010). Unfortunately, it is the patient that suffers the most.

quality of work. The supply of nurses in Canada has declined for the first time in almost 20

The Nursing Profession has been experiencing shortages for many years. The pattern seems to be repetitive, high demand for nurses followed by phases of downsizing with a surplus of nurses. The earlier years of the nursing shortage was short compared to today’s current nursing shortage. The nursing shortage exist globally and in all nursing areas. There are several factors that are the cause of the nursing shortage of today as well in years past.

The national nursing shortage is an ever-growing concern, and it is essential for healthcare organizations to confront the looming issue. Possible solutions to the nursing shortage include retaining older nurses who are looking to retire, increasing the amount of students graduating from nursing schools, and drawing nurses back to the bedside who have left the nursing workforce (Hatcher, 2006). Leaders must assess the nursing turnover in their organization, and they must strategize on ways to retain those nurses. Organizations must implement techniques to retain older nurses to help combat the national nursing shortage and prevent a national healthcare disaster (Keller & Burns, 2010). The purpose of this paper is to identify the demographic breakdown of an organization, explain how the organization’s environment is conducive and non-conducive for older workers, and describe tactics to retain older workers.

Some of the fundamental duties of RNs include working with a diverse range of patients from pediatric to geriatric, with specialization in one of the specific areas, including dermatology, neurologic care, cardiac care, and neo-natal intensive care. Other roles and responsibilities include careful observation and recording of patient behavior, effective consultation with doctors, physicians, and other healthcare professionals, establishment of treatment plans, and operation of medical equipment. Include these roles and responsibilities in the appropriate section of your resume template.

With over 2 million jobs, registered nurses represent the largest health care occupation (Windle, 2008, p. 209). Although nurses are the biggest health care occupation, there continues to be a shortage in the United States. The shortage has worsened because of rising healthcare costs and a focus on cost containment, which has negatively impacted nurse work environments (Keeler and Cramer, 2007, p. 350). With demand for healthcare expecting to continue to increase and financial pressures becoming more burdensome, these shortages will likely become even more critical in coming years if not adequately addressed (Love et al., 2006, p. 558). The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 1.2 million nurses will be required to fill new and vacated nursing positions by the end of 2014 (Windle, 2008, p. 209).

Between you and I we have said it all, you brought up the element of putting more doctors into the system, however, I read one study that stated MDs would rather work in major cities and not small towns. So, I believe the shortage will be handled by Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and Physician Assistants (PAs).

Another growing issue that Canada faces in regard to the state of its healthcare is the global shortage of physicians and nurses. With the population continually getting larger, and older, medical personnel, in particular nurses, are becoming completely overwhelmed. Not only is the global nursing shortage having a negative effect on patients, nurses are being overworked to compensate for lack of staff. Since 2002, “...the nursing shortage has been termed a global crisis.”. (Sage Publications). The “supply and demand” of nurses must be met appropriately to ensure the future of Canada’s current healthcare

Within the content of this paper, I will be presenting a description of the current nursing shortage. An

In 2002, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projected that the United States would be 800,000 registered nurses short of the national need by the year 2020. Recently, this number has increased to over one million RNs short of the need by 2012. Although there has been some indication that the entry of older nurses into the profession, along with efforts to recruit foreign-born nurses, have helped to ease the shortage, scholars project that the predicted trends are likely to continue (Auerbach, Buerhaus, & Steiger, 2007; Buerhaus, Donelan, Ulrich, Norman and Dittus, 2006; Larkin, 2007). As such, the need for understanding the factors contributing to the nationwide shortage has never been greater.

The national nursing shortage is predicted to continue to rise to levels that have not been seen since the 1960’s (Fasoli, 2010). Managers must create an environment that is conducive to employees. The leader needs to promote organizational commitment and retain employees by promoting a positive culture on the unit. Nurses want an environment where they can provide high-quality care to patients and leaders must help facilitate and maintain this environment. Employees also want to feel like their opinions matter to the manager, and they have a say in the future of the unit. Employees do not want to feel like they are not important, or their voices are not being heard.

With our nation focusing more on health care and the overall wellness of its people, the demand for it has been rising. According to Dr. Paul Takiguchi, a dermatologist at Pali Momi “- the biggest issue is the shortage of physicians which includes dermatologists, thus limiting patients’ timely access to care.” Though it may not seem like a big deal, the effects of it are starting to appear today and will only become more prevalent in the near future. In order to stop the doctor shortage in the field of medicine, the government must make changes to the education and training of doctors.

Is the nursing shortage in the United States real? The answer to that question is not as simple as it may seem. The nursing shortage greatly depends on the constant changes in healthcare coverage, for example Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements but it is also based on the rising number of the aging population. Although many sources predict that the nursing shortage is expected to get worse overall throughout the United States. There many other sources that we must consider when debating whether or not there is a big deficit. There are over 3 million nurses in America and they make up the largest segment of the health-care workforce in the U.S. (Grant, 2016). Nursing is one of the largest number of healthcare professionals in the United

working outside of hospitals, so as care shifts into a community based setting, there is a strong

According to Paller (2012), the nursing shortage in different countries for example the United States tends not to be the only growing problem, but has also become a complex one. Nursing shortage and nurse's turnover has become the worsening predicament in the health care industry in the United