Assignment Example on Nursing Shortages

Introduction

The nursing profession has been recognized as among the fastest growing medical field having more than three million members hence becoming the most significant portion of the healthcare workforce in the country. In America, it has been projected that Registered nurses shortage will face it. Various studies show that the already working nursing generation is soon approaching their retirement hence there are increased chances that there will be future nurses shortage. Compounding the issue is that many nursing schools around the nation are aiming at expanding their capacity to attain the increasing demand for the healthcare. This paper will reflect on the approaches that can be used in the process of reversing the national nursing shortage.

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Situation: Is This Something Than Can Be Legislated?

Identify the problem/concern: Nursing shortages.

As a result of the Affordable Care Act that was newly implemented in 2010, several healthcare clinics and hospitals are affected by the issue of the nursing shortage. Today, there is an increase in the demand for quality healthcare while there are more patients who are acquiring access; the nurses are noticing that there is already a shortage of the staff members. All patients deserve to receive the best quality of healthcare services which can be only acquired if the ratios between nurses to patients are high which will result in the provision of outstanding healthcare services.

State your proposal/idea.

Increased turnover rates and nursing shortages are a significant obstacle in nursing profession given that there are projections that assert that the trend is expected to continue in the next years if the problem is not taken care of. In the past, there have several strategies that have been implemented as a way of getting ahead of the nurses' shortage issue affecting the healthcare system. Solutions such as relocation coverage and sign-on bonuses have been implemented although they result in limited effects as they only help in redistributing of nurses instead of raising their numbers across the country. The solutions that are aimed at creating sustained improvement that will help the case of nurses shortage requires being more radical as compared to the past solutions which must mainly address several long-term problems. A major solution that needs to be implemented to the healthcare system is cross-training workers such that they can cater to several service lines. As a result, there will be a reduction in the nurses' shortages that are experienced as there will be additional support staffs who will ease the nursing responsibility. I propose that there be a change in the Registered Nurses to patient ratio cap by having to cross-train for given service lines; surgical/medical, and telemetry, such that all nurses in every department may carry out either job.

Background: Do Your Research

Include studies, reports, personal experience, or anecdotal stories related to your proposal.

Nurses usually leave their work for different reasons, some for personal reasons, some for the need to be promoted, while some for a shift in the service line. Lack of enough staffing is deemed to be the biggest problem, increasing the stress levels, and influencing job satisfaction which makes several staffs quit their profession. At Adelphi University College of Nursing and Public Health, a study was carried out which realized that about more than 75% of the registered nurses have a firm belief that nursing shortages in the country poses a serious threat to the quality of the services they provide, work life quality as well as the time that nurses spend with their patients ("Adelphi University College of Nursing and Public Health", 2015). Many types of research indicate that the nurses' shortage may be future catalyst fort growing stresses among nurses which will result to a reduced level of quality of patient care and make some nurses to quit their profession. Given that healthcare institutions are facing nursing shortages and having new nurses generations joining the workforce, there is an urgent need to critically consider all factors which affect nurse turnover as a necessity needed to establish a healthcare working environment which retains its staffs.

Has there been similar legislation introduced and/or passed in other states? If so, include it.

California has already introduced legal; limit meant for the ratios involving nurse to patient. In 1999 after implementation of AB394 Act, California was recognized as the first region that created ratio guiding the minimum registered nurses to patients for hospitals. The Act provided a particular numerical ratio for nurses to patients meant for acute psychiatric, acute care, as well as specialty hospital located in California. The rates represented the maximum numbers of the patients who can be assigned to a given registered nurse in one shift. The law required that there be additional registered nurses be allocated according to the documented system of patient classification which determines the needs of the nursing care and patient that include the complexity of given clinical need, and illness severity. The regulation needed that Department of Health Services (DHS) should develop specific ratios meant for given hospital units (Coffman, Seago, & Spetz, 2002). During 2002, DHS provided the proposed laws to implement the regulation such that it includes these particular ratios.

Assessment: Finances and Stakeholders

Identify financial impact if any (e.g., added costs, cost savings, increased revenue):

There is a potential for having a financial influence on the hospitals and some other institutions in the sector of healthcare for them to retain nurses as well as employing several nursing staffs. Having a good plan will result in predictable and balanced financial results which will help in making sure there is continued access to affordable financing as well as creating a work environment that is stable. This integrated strategy to planning strengthens typically the ability to identify and implementing system-wide solutions and priorities and predicting and attaining the community needs that are within the budget.

Identify stakeholder groups that would support this bill:

• Doctors
• Patients
• Nurses/Supporting Staff
• Government
• Community/General public
• Identify people/groups that would oppose this bill:
• Board of directors of hospitals
• Insurance Company
• Owners of the medical institutions

Recommendation

Make an appointment with your legislator to discuss your proposal

Several financial opportunities such as the provision of sign-on bonuses may help in attracting more nurses and offering tuition assistance. Many nurses are returning to school with the objective of furthering their nursing education. Therefore, it will be necessary for the medical institutions and other healthcare clinics to provide an education stipend which will attract many nurses to further their education. Another recommendation would be; there be granting of financial help to the students who would want to become nurses as well as those students who are in nursing schools which would help them to finish their education and join the nursing workforce. This can be attained by having the government pushing for loans to the students who are interested in moving their nursing career.

Another recommendation is that the medical institution to implement incentive that is performance-based which will help with retention of nurses. The incentives that are performance-based need to be directed to the nurses with the aim of exchanging for all contributions in attaining high performance. Most of the performance incentives are usually directed to doctors and other healthcare providers instead of leading them to the staff nurses which may be either collectively or individually. Therefore, the medical institutions will need to determine ways in which they allocate any given incentive payment that will be designated for the nurses' staffs.

References

Adelphi University College of Nursing and Public Health. (2015). Mildred Montag. We are building on 70 years of success. Garden City, NY: Author. Retrieved from http://nursing.adelphi.edu/about/who-we-are/history/

Coffman, J. M., Seago, J. A., & Spetz, J. (2002). Minimum nurse-to-patient ratios in acute care hospitals in California. Health Affairs, 21(5), 53-64.