Recently, studies have shown that in the United States there are 2.7 million working nurses. While this number may appear to be a lot, there is actually an extreme lack of individuals pursing nursing degrees. To make matters worse, this is not a recent phenomenon. Since 1965, the nursing field has been operating on a shortage and the reasons are based on the schooling.
Reasons for the Nursing Shortage
The problems stems from education and training that is required. Both are extremely taxing on and require dedication to complete and is demanding of time and knowledge. The workload is so rigorous that causes students to drop out. Even students whose commitment is unwavering face issues when it comes to finding clinical training slots and teachers. Many nursing students are turned away every year simply because there are not enough instructors.
Negative Effects Caused by the Shortage
The effects of this shortage can be seen in hospitals everywhere. Attention given to each patients has the potential to suffer greatly when the ratio of patients to nurses teeters too high for the nurses to handle. Since nurses are needed for assisting doctor’s, important aspects of care, such as surgery, are delayed because there are not enough on staff to fill the gaps.
Since individuals can only work so many hours in a day, hospitals struggle to fill shifts properly. If nurses are overworked, there is the potential for mistakes to occur. Or worse, nurses will leave the profession because the toll it takes upon their health is too great.
Staffing Models
There are several staffing models employed by hospitals since no one models is a great fit for every environment. They include:
• Budget-based staffing which is the most common method used. It is determined by the number of nursing hours per patient day or the nursing hours dived by the total number of patient days.
• Staffing by nurse-patient ratio which is based on the number of patients on a unit. With this model comes the possibility of not admitting any more patients when they hit capacity.
• Staffing by patient acuity takes into consideration the complexity of care a patient will require. It will then break down how long each task it will take a nurse to complete. This is not the most reliable method.
What Needs to Change
First, the educational aspect of nursing needs to change. Hiring more instructors for the program. Considering how students are turned down from programs every year due to lack of space shows that it does have interest.
Budget is where the problem truly lies and funding needs to be allocated in order to truly make a difference in this shortage. More clinical space and instructors need to be provided for students. As well as a budget to hire more nurses since the methods used for staffing fall extremely short of their intended purposes.
Nursing Exam Assistance
The lack of nurses and the problems it stems from should not deter any nursing student. Know that you building towards a career that is in demand and where you can make a difference in more ways than one. Not only will you be filling gaps but doing so for the betterment of care provided to individuals who need it.
At Elite Reviews, we provide the assistance nursing students need when it comes to acing their exams. For additional information about our services, visit us online or click on the links below.
