Report: Causes and Consequences of Nurse Shortage in Healthcare

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the critical issue of nurse shortages in healthcare, examining its causes, consequences, and potential solutions. The study utilizes primary and secondary research, along with professional guidelines, to identify key factors contributing to the global shortage, including inadequate workforce planning, lack of educational resources, and challenging working conditions. The analysis highlights the impact of nurse shortages on patient care, including compromised safety and reduced access to services. The report also explores the role of technological advancements and the aging workforce, as well as the impact of factors such as the lack of healthy and safe working environments for health workers. It suggests strategies to address the shortage, such as improving working conditions, providing growth opportunities, and implementing awareness programs. The report also references examples and data from various sources, including the World Health Organization and national health services, to support its findings and recommendations. Overall, the report provides a detailed overview of the challenges faced by healthcare organizations worldwide and offers insights for healthcare professionals and students.

HEALTH AND CARE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Health and care services plays an important role manage health facilities in society.
These are those services which provides assistance to people for health problems. The care and
heath facilities are common across the globe. There are various consequences and situation faced
by health organisation such as intervention measures, advancement in technology, lack of
employees, shortage of nurses etc. The most common and increasing concern of era is
inadequacy of nurses. The report will discuss on health concerns of local and global level that is
lack of practitioners. The report is based on findings from three key sources that is primary
research, secondary research and professional guidelines of health care organisation. Further, it
has been found out that its is worldwide health concern of faced by every organisation an
increasing because of various reason such as, lack of education resources, increasing pressure of
certified exams by nursing schools, technological advancement etc. As per the articles it has been
analysed that workforce planning in health care organisation is the cause which is impacting
nursing abilities and availability. In addition, it has been discovered that, according to author
lack of healthy and safety of health workers is the cause which is hindering interest of people in
health care profession. Thus, from the findings it can suggest that it is important for the
organisation to focus on improving working condition of nurses and on the same end enabling
growth opportunities to nursing profession is the strategy which can assist in managing shortage
of nurses across the globe. In addition, from the example of Kansas which is highlighted in
report can be said that it is important for the health care firm to organise programme to create
awareness among people about nursing and providing free education.
Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
ANALYSIS......................................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
Health and care services are core of society because these provide a sense of living to
people by providing people medical and clinical services. Heath is the major concern among
people at global level and it is important for wellbeing care centre along with government to
ensure safe and secure medical services to people. Easy and safe access to health and care in the
foremost priority of industry worldwide. There are various health concerns at the global level in
health care practices such as emergency services, lack of responsibility and authority,
employee’s safety, availability of medical and clinical professionals, shortage of nurses, etc.
However, the increasing global health concern is shortage of nurses due to which service users
lack in care and appropriate medication services.
The shortage of nurse is local and global concern because nursing schools worldwide are
unable to meet the expanded need of health care organisation for wellbeing care practitioners.
The report will outline about top occupation as per Bureau of labour statistic which helps in
determining employment projections. The findings and discussion of analysis will be focused on
various studies and statistics of worldwide countries which will help in developing critical
understanding over shortage of nurses concern. It is important to analyse core reason behind lack
of nursing services because it will assist in determining improvement and lacking areas of health
and care. Thus, the report will recognise studies on the key issue shortage of nurses after
determining specific reason to it.
ANALYSIS
The motive behind conducting this research is to identify cause of inadequacy of nurses
at local and global level. The findings will assist in ascertaining risks associated with lack of
health practitioners in health care enterprises. The shortage of nurses in hospital is leading to lack
of patient’s care and life threatening consequences to it. Therefore, it is important for scholar to
determine reason of sufficiency in health care of well-being practitioners to overcome lacking
patient care services.
As global nursing shortage, it has been determined that the major cause is not inadequacy
of health practitioners instead it is lack of skilled practitioner and it is health concern because
there are nurses who even do not follow the medication procedures at the time of proving
treatment and medication to patients like the right per, right dose and right time. There are
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practitioners who just work according to their comfort. However, shortage of nurses is global
concern because nursing schools are unable to meet the requirement of health care organisations.
Nursing is scientific and autonomous profession where no organisation can risk for hiring
unskilled person and it is the major reason behind shortages because schools only confirm about
practitioners after their certified exams which comprise their theoretical and practical knowledge.
Further, it is important for the nurses to be sure of working for patient’s care. Thus, from this
discussion, it has been analysed that there is gap in between skilled nurses and requirement in
hospitals which leads to insufficiency of health care provider.
According to Halter and et.al., 2017, it has been derived that as per world health
organisation, there are total 59.2 million health care full-time workers among which two third are
involved in care and nursing services. As per WHO, inadequacy of nurses is increasing because
of large population countries which follow old economy and has maximum population of elderly
people. It is concerned because the aged population means increasing diseases and care needs.
The research states that technological advancement is helping health care organisation in
managing care needs by on the other old people who are separated from family demands care
from health care providers which has assisted organisation in determining need of nurses and
their shortages. From the article, it has been identified that nursing is profession which helps
hospital in serving proper medication and care services to patients especially the elderly people
(Monterosso, Ross-Adjie and Keeney, 2015). It has been defined that there are numerous reasons
behind inadequacy of health care practitioners like lack of education, requirement of training and
huge capital investment. As per publication, it can be said that nursing is considered as a time
consuming educational process which also do not offer any future growth in nursing profession.
The research also reflected indication to global nurses which states that International Councils of
Health professional reports 129 national nurses associations representing 13 million health care
professionals across the globe. Thus, as per discussion, it has been found that nursing population
ratio is the best strategy which can help health organisation in evaluating professional nursing
skills in every country (Changing how the world thinks about nursing, 2018).
Similarly, short staffing is an increasing health concern of local and global level because
of various employment reasons like inadequate working environment, lack of facilities,
inappropriate nursing education and clinical resources. Work environment plays a vital role in
serving employee satisfaction and there are various health care organisation, where employees
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handle patient manually, which is risky and injurious. Apart from this, increasing case of nurses
slips and trips in hospital is leading employee retention and is also a cause of shortage of nurses.
The manual handling of patients has a negative influence on patient care services and their
recovery outcomes (Coetzee, McKerrow and Sieberhagen, 2016). For instance, if in case the
nurse is asked to serve care to person suffering from obesity then in this case, the care provider
faces difficulty in making person sit or walk which can be risky for service user as well as
practitioners. In contrast, lack of nursing knowledge or recruitment of aged nurses is key issue
which relates to inadequacy of health practitioners.
Shortage of nurses in UK is affecting patient care and threatening lives, 2018, research
denotes deficit of nurses in UK, which is affecting patient care and is turning life threatening
because these are the individual who are tonic for health care services in institution like National
Health services. The focus on recruiting qualified workforce is the reason which has led to
insufficiency of uses in health care centres. Increasing shortage is leading to overseas recruitment
where health care organisation is focusing on global recruitment. This global recruitment by
hospitals is cause of inadequacy in nursing in domestic area. The increasing concern of shortage
of heath care providers is turning risky for health care services to patients. The medical
professional and diagnostic team is focused on analysing health concern of patients and treating
as well as prescribing patient but on the other hand, nurses are crucial part of care services
because these are the individuals who make sure that service users are recovering, taking proper
medication and are safe in hospital premises (Atefi, Abdullah and Mazlom, 2014). Nurses are
concerned direct patient care that is why it is important for the hospital to ensure that there are
adequate and skilled professional available in hospitals. Apparently, shortage of care providers is
because of lack of growth in this career. It is occupation where incentive limits the growth of
profession due to which individuals do not prefer nursing as career.
England ‘faces shortfall of 42,000 nurses by 2020, 2017, research stated inadequacy of
nurses as worsening problem and where England faces shortfall in nurses and it can lead to
42000 by 2020. The findings of are based on health foundations and data of 2016 from National
health care services. It identified about fall in pay which is which has decreased by 12 percent in
2010 to 2012 a and will decrease more. The NHS report determined that the lacking workforce
planning is the cause of insufficiency in care providers especially in UK after Brexit. Director of
research and Economic at health foundation Anita Charles worth quoted that training issues are
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the most common problems which is leading to lack of health care profession in NHS. The
management do not aim at improving workforce planning due to which many professional resign
and increasing inadequacy in nursing ratio. Apart from this, she outlined about Brexit when she
stated that the loss in planning is occurring due to Brexit as it focuses on internation recruitment
and therefore care services in UK especially in NHS are at risk. Thus, from this the discussion, it
has been found out that safe staffing in health care in the concern for which the organisation need
to improve their workforces planning keeping in mind needs and safety concerns of health care
providers.
There are various local and global level concerns which are reason of shortage of nursing
professionals. Like Ageing Registered nurse Workforce who can be retired at anytime and lack
working abilities due to age factor ad it is the professional where the person needs to be attentive
and accurate for care services. The average registered employee nurse are of age 45 and will
soon turn 50, for which it is important for the heath care organisation to plan recruitment of
young staff force in order to overcome shortage of health care professionals and to meet care
needs of professionals. Nevertheless, the another cause of nurses is recruitment of medical
assistant rather care providers. The responsibilities of assistant medical professionals is high in
comparison to nurses in cases of emergency (Kagan and Melendez‐Torres, 2015.). Therefore,
these days health organisation have changed trend of recruiting nurses by replacing them with
professional of medication which assist doctors but these individuals lack care services. Thus,
this recruitment plans also heading towards shortage of nurses. There are hospitals which are
focused on cutting costs of nursing care practices but it is turning life threatening for patients.
Nevertheless, every have their own view for Nursing as career because the profession has lost its
appeal in youth due to which no person is willing to quality nurse. As per Buchan and Aiken,
2008, it has been analysed that there are various concerns which are related to nursing procession
ad shortages like, the choosing to nurse as career restricts individual growth because it offers no
promotion rather than senior nurse. The restriction in career plans limits people choices for
practising nursing. Apart from this the author discussed about advanced clinical and medical
tools which assist the patient in managing own care needs which reduces the need of manpower.
The decreasing manual working also leading of inadequacy in nursing and care profession
because, when the person is in hospital the basic need of person is someone to look after to
motivate them or to develop sense of living. Thus, health care practitioner are the individuals
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who assist people with their basic needs and on time medication which helps in easy recovery.
Further, to promote nursing profession and to over inadequacy of health practitioners much
health care organisation across the globe started planning to launch programmes for creating
awareness of nursing as profession. IN those programmes the firm were focused on education
interested people (Coetzee, McKerrow and Sieberhagen, 2016). For instance, Kansas in 2006
established a 10-year, $30 million matching grant plan to encourage and increase health care
providers. The programme was focused on providing education to interested people in registered
nurse as profession. In this programme plan was to educated at least 250 nurses each year. Thus,
from above findings it can states that nursing is not considered as career plan and reputed
profession for many people. Therefore, people these days do not consider nursing as education
plan which is leading to shortage of nurses.
CONCLUSION
The report summarized about local and global health concern which is inadequate of
nurses in health and care organisation. It determined that health and care services plays and
important role of society as it helps in preventing disease. These are facilities which are core for
society and needs to be perfect in term of every basic facilities which can be care providers,
medication, clinical setting, medical professionals etc. Further the report outlined various causes
of shortage of nurses that is lack of education resources, loss of appeal for nursing professional.
Workforce planning in health care organisation, replace of nurses from medical assistants, etc.
Apart from this, the report outlined discussion and findings three sources which were based on
professional guidelines of health care organisation, primary rand secondary research. From study
it has been determined that advancement in technology has reduced the nee of manual work due t
which the organisation planning for employees differentiate with changes but on the other hand
patients in hospitals assist themselves with customized beds and walking tool but still needs care
providers. However, as per professional guidelines, availability of nurses in NHS was discovered
from which it is discovered that the firm lack workforce planning and training due to which the
care providers leaves job which turn into short of health practitioner that impact care services.
Thus, as per the analysis it can be concluded that, there are various reason behind insufficiency
ion health care practitioners which is hampering health and care services of organisation across
the globe.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Atefi, N., Abdullah, K.L. and Mazlom, R., 2014. Factors influencing registered nurses perception
of their overall job satisfaction: a qualitative study. International nursing review.
61(3). pp.352-360.
Buchan, J. and Aiken, L., 2008. Solving nursing shortages: a common priority. Journal of
clinical nursing. 17(24). pp.3262-3268.
Coetzee, M., McKerrow, N.H. and Sieberhagen, S., 2016. Building paediatric nurse training
capacity for Africa, in Africa. The Lancet Global Health. 4(7). pp.e449-e450.
Halter, M. and et.al., 2017. The determinants and consequences of adult nursing staff turnover: a
systematic review of systematic reviews. BMC health services research. 17(1).
p.824.
Kagan, S.H. and Melendez‐Torres, G.J., 2015. Ageism in nursing. Journal of nursing
management. 23(5). pp.644-650.
Monterosso, L., Ross-Adjie, G. and Keeney, S., 2015. Developing a research agenda for nursing
and midwifery: a modified Delphi study. Contemporary nurse. 51(1). pp.83-95.
Online
Changing how the world thinks about nursing. 2018. [Online] Available
through:<http://www.truthaboutnursing.org/faq/nursing_shortage.html>.
England ‘faces shortfall of 42,000 nurses by 2020’. 2017. [Online] Available through:
<https://rcni.com/primary-health-care/newsroom/news/england-faces-shortfall-of-
42000-nurses-2020-83966>.
Kennedy and Maureen Shawn M. A., 2009. The Nursing Shortage. [Online] Available through:
<https://journals.lww.com/ajnonline/fulltext/2009/01000/thenursingshortage.15.aspx>.
Shortage of nurses in UK is affecting patient care and threatening lives. 2018. [Online]
Available through: <https://theconversation.com/shortage-of-nurses-in-uk-is-affecting-
patient-care-and-threatening-lives-89734>.
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