Attending to Nursing Staff Shortage

Running Head: ATTENDING TO NURSING STAFF SHORTAGE 1
DEVELOPING ORGANIZATIONAL POLICIES AND PRATICES FOR NURSING
STAFF SHORTAGE
Student Name
Walden University
NURS 6053
Date:
Dr. E. Townsley
Introduction

ATTENDING TO NURSING STAFF SHORTAGE 2
The role of leader in a healthcare organization is to meet goals and establish priorities
while allocating resources in an appropriate manner. Competing needs of the workforce,
resources and patients often might result in conflict. Leaders possesses the capability to
develop solution to the problems through policies and actions. Nursing profession comprises
of the largest section of health profession and according to World Health Statistics Report
there are 3.9 million nurses and midwives in US, with additional 1 million needed by 2020.
Post review of the national healthcare issue/ stressor examined as shortage of nursing staffs,
policies and practices to be applied in the healthcare issue/ stressor is developed is the current
analysis. As per the American Nurses Association, nursing jobs will be available more than
any other profession in the United States. Article in Nursing Times and The US Bureau of
Labour Statistics projects requirement of 11 million nurses to meet shortages of nurse
(Rosseter, 2014).
Developing policies and Procedures
Competing needs impacting healthcare issue/ stressor
The two competing needs that affects shortage of nursing staffs, is providing quality
services to patient in timely manner and ageing nursing staffs, with most registered nurse
being above the age of 50 years. The first competing need is inability of trainee nurses to
provide high quality services to patient at the time when it is necessary (Somers, Finch, &
Birnbaum, 2010). Due to shortage of nursing staffs there is enormous pressure on the present
staffs of nursing. Present RNs needs to continue providing patient care at appropriate quality
levels to prevent any negative consequences thereof. This leads to high burnout amongst
nurses due to increasing work pressure. Some nurses graduate and immediately starts
working experiencing high levels of burnout and leaves the profession. Current average for

ATTENDING TO NURSING STAFF SHORTAGE 3
turnover is 8.8% to 37.0%, changing in regards to geographical locations and speciality in
nursing.
The second competing need is that most of the registered nurses are older than 50 years
(approximately 1 million) and it is expected that approximately 70,000 nurses will retire by
2024. It has been estimated that 1/3rd of the nursing workforce will retire within the next 15
years (Haddad, & Toney-Butler, 2019). This number encompasses nursing faculty, indicating
that their fewer graduating nurses will have resources while learning. There will be
limitations in enrolment deteriorating overall quality of the nursing program, which might
lead to declining in classes. This might lead to declining number of nurses in the future.
Relevant policy or practice influencing healthcare issue/stressor
The relevant policy with the organization’s healthcare setting that influences nursing
shortage includes high level of nursing turnover that affects staffing ratio. The current
organization does not have the requisite number of nurse-patient ratios. Due to low nurse-
patient ration creates job pressure and stress which ultimately leads to burnout forcing nurses
to leave the organization (Duvall, & Andrews, 2010). Often new nurses are not provided with
adequate training and support to deal with complex situation and patient cases. There is no
organizational policy to train newly joined nurses, such that they can easily understand their
job role. Moreover, senior nurses are expected to provide training to newly joined nurses and
junior nurses regarding their job roles, which creates more pressure for senior nurses. With
most nurses being female, childbearing years are often seen to take leave or abstain from their
profession altogether. While some nurses are seen to return to their job but they might
consider new job. Managers and leaders within the organization have failed to diagnose
shortage in nursing ration that often leads to errors, higher morbidity and rates in mortality