The Issues of Staffing in Hospitals and the Shortage of Nurses

The Issues of Staffing in Hospitals and the Shortage of Nurses

Dr. McMenamin claims that there is no such problem as the shortage of nurses in hospitals now, but this issue will arise when older generations retire. In fact, 140,000 students pass the certification exams every year to work as registered nurses (ANA, n.d.a). Furthermore, many of those who received their degrees in the 1970s still work in healthcare organizations (ANA, n.d.a). Since they represent 40% of clinical workers, hospitals will face the dilemma of nurse insufficiency when almost half of their workforce leaves permanently (ANA, n.d.a). Therefore, the healthcare economist suggests that educational institutions should continue to train more nurses than the system needs to avoid a future crisis of nursing staff shortage.

The second article discusses the importance of appropriate nurse staffing in healthcare institutions to ensure adequate care for patients. Furthermore, it is highlighted that ANA tries to address the issue of unsafe working conditions for nurses (ANA, n.d.b). Indeed, various cutbacks not only increase workload but also affects patient outcomes. Therefore, it is essential to empower and encourage nursing staff to attain higher levels of education and take more responsibility (ANA, n.d.b). Overall, this article suggests that improving working conditions for nurses can help reduce the number of preventable accidents and hospital mortality rates.

Summary

In summary, the two issues reviewed in this essay are the shortage of nurses and staffing issues in hospitals. The interview with Dr. McMenamin revealed that the issue of the insufficient workforce is prospective rather than ongoing. Thus, he recommended preparing more professionals in this field to prevent the shortage in the future when old generations retire. The second article claims that since nurses are the central workforce of healthcare organizations standing at the forefront of patient care, staffing should be improved to reduce stress and burnout.

References

ANA. (n.d.a). ANA health care economist Peter McMenamin on the nursing shortage outlook. Web.