Understaffing in Nursing

Running head: UNDERSTAFFING IN NURSING
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Understaffing in Nursing
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Introduction
Understaffing in nurses can be defined as the imbalance between the high demand for
nurses and the supply. This condition has been in existence for some time and it is caused by
different factors (Metcalf, Wang, & Habermann, 2018). Unfavorable working conditions
discourage majority of nurses who quit the profession and this creates stress and unnecessary
pressure on the remaining nurses thus affects their output. Therefore, there is need of urgent
action to bar more nurses leaving the profession so as to sustain or achieve the World health
Organization recommended nurse-patient ratio. Within the framework of this assignment, there
will be a discussion on the causes
Causes of understaffing in nursing
Understaffing in nursing caused by a variety of factors. Studies reveal that faculty
shortage is one of the causes. The study explains that current faculties do not have the capacity to
enroll enough nurse students. Prospective students are therefore turned away. In 2012 for
example, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing survey reported that they had to turn
down more than 79,659 qualified applicants for both the baccalaureate and graduate nursing
programs (Twigg, Gelder, & Myers, 2015). The reason being insufficient faculty, clinical sites,
classrooms and budget constraints. Another study elaborates that understaffing in nurses is as a
result of the ever increasing population. The study notes that the rate at which the population is
growing is alarming. The population is on the rise while the number of nurses is stagnating. This
creates an imbalance between the demand and the supply of nurses thus creating a shortage of
nurses. Other factors include aging workforce, workload and work environment. The National
Council of State Boards of Nursing and the Forum of State Nursing Workforce Centers in a
survey conducted in 2013 found out that 55% of the registered nurses are above 50 years

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(Metcalf, Wang, & Habermann, 2018). The Health Resources and Services Administration
projects on the other hand reported that more than one million registered nurses will retire in 10
to 15 years’ time and this will create a shortage of nursing.
Effects of understaffing in nursing
Understaffing in nurses has effects both on the patient, the nurses and the community.
According to the World Health Organization, there should be 250 healthcare workers per
100,000 of the population. Failure to sustain this ratio leads to dire consequences. One of effects
is increased medical errors to the patients. A study by Twigg, Gelder, & Myers in 2015 found
out that the available few nurses have to work for around 14 hours a day to make up for the
unavailable nurses (Twigg, Gelder, & Myers, 2015). This is in contrary to the recommended 8
hours a day. Working for long hours leads to fatigue among the nurses thus they are likely to
commit medical errors. Eventually, the quality of care to the patients deteriorates completely.
Shortage of nurses also leads to mental disorders among nurses. In a survey conducted by Silva-
Santos et al in 2018, mental health disorders were reported among nurses who work for more
than 12 hours a day (Silva-Santos et al., 2018). This is due to the stress and fatigue that comes
along with working for long hours. The nurses then have to undergo treatment which further
creates a shortage of the nurses.
How long the problem has been in existence
Understaffing of nurses begun in 1946 to 1964 with the baby boom In USA. The census
conducted within this period found out that there were 77 million American boomers coupled
with low entry level of workers in 1930s (Metcalf, Wang, & Habermann, 2018). In early 90s,
there were increased complains about managed care and this further discouraged young students