Nursing Shortage

Introduction to Article:  In this essay, we cover the topic of the current nursing shortage.  We define what a nursing shortage is and delve into the reasons why there is a nursing shortage.  The essay describes the causes of the nursing shortage, as well as the effects of that nursing shortage, on the nursing profession and on healthcare in the United States.  After looking at some of the nursing shortage statistics, the essay will examine different ideas about what can be done to prevent future nursing shortages.  In addition to looking specifically at the nursing shortage issue, the essay will provide an example of how to write an academic essay.  It includes all of the components of a traditional academic essay: introduction, hook, thesis statement, a body with evidence and analysis of that evidence, a conclusion, and a reference section.  Any sources used in the essay are properly referenced in an academic format.  Therefore, this essay can be used as a template for a nursing shortage or any other type of academic essay.   Related Topics: The High Price of Health Care- Health care costs in the United States are astronomical when compared to costs for comparable healthcare around the world.  This essay would explore why healthcare costs in the U.S.

are so high, what can be done to reduce costs, and whether patient care is negatively impacted by the cost of healthcare.  The essay would also include an examination of the role that other providers, including nurses, could play in an overhaul of the healthcare system.   Preparing for Higher Education- In this essay, we examine whether modern students are being prepared for higher education.  Have standards in K-12 education led to students being unprepared for higher education?  Are students being steered towards careers that are inaccessible for many people?  Are students being discouraged from pursuing viable career opportunities, such as nursing?    Wages in the United States- Wages in the United States have largely stagnated for the middle class.  While the cost of living has risen significantly, wages have not kept up.  Are there professions where wages have kept up with the cost-of-living?  Are there professions that are more recession-proof than other positions?  This essay should include an exploration of professions in the U.S.

that can support a middle-class lifestyle. Titles: 2019 Nursing Shortage Not Enough Nurses How the Nursing Shortage Impacts Patient Care Why Is There a Nursing Shortage?     Outline: I. Introduction II. Body A. What is a nursing shortage?  B. Why is there a nursing shortage?  C. Causes of the nursing shortage D. Effects of the nursing shortage E. Nursing shortage statistics F. What can be done to prevent a nursing shortage?  III.

Conclusion  Introduction:  There is a nursing shortage in the United States.  A nursing shortage means that there are not enough nurses to fill available nursing positions.  The nursing shortage is the result of a number of different factors, some that are within the control of the nursing profession, but others that are caused by factors outside of the profession.  The nursing shortage has led to a number of different impacts on the medical profession, from a negative impact on patient care to a positive impact on nursing salaries in the highest-demand areas.  Understanding the current and projected future impact of the nursing shortage requires examining the nursing shortage statistics.  Once those are understood, it may be easier to help understand what can be done to prevent nursing shortages in the future.    Essay Hook: With an aging population, the demand for nurses is only going to increase and failure to solve the nursing shortage is going to inevitably lead to an overall decline in patient care.      Thesis Statement:  Solving the nursing shortage is going to require a multi-faceted approach, which addresses all of the causes of the nursing shortage without compromising the professional standards for nurse education and training.   Body: What is a Nursing Shortage? A nursing shortage refers to a shortage of nurses when compared to available nursing positions.  In other words, if there are not enough professional nurses to fill available nursing positions, then there is a nursing shortage.  However, this issue can be difficult to understand because there are actually several different professions that fall under the general label of “nurse.”  Many people use the term nurse to describe any non-MD medical professional that handles some aspect of patient care, but this is an incorrect use of the term.

Some medical professionals are para-professionals or assistants, and do not have the same background, experience, or education as nurses.  Further complicating the issue is the idea that, in the United States, nurses can also be licensed practical nurses (LPN), licensed vocational nurses (LVN), registered nurses (RN), advanced practice registered nurses (APRN), and nurse practitioners.  The differences in these positions reflect differences in educational requirements.  LPN and LVN nurses require a technical degree with specialized education in healthcare, but have limited abilities in terms of diagnosis and treatment of patients.  RNs have bachelor or associate degrees in nursing and have a greater ability to diagnose and treat patients.  LPN and LVN nurses have masters’ degrees and specialized skills that let them provide services beyond traditional nursing (LeBoeuf, 2018).  In this essay, the term nursing storage specifically refers to a shortage of RNs, though many of the same factors would also impact other components of the nursing profession.

Why is There a Nursing Shortage? Trying to describe why there is a nursing shortage can be difficult, because there is not a single root cause for the problem.  Instead, a variety of different factors have combined to create the nursing shortage.  One cause of the nursing shortage is that nursing school enrollment is not growing enough to meet the projected demand for nurses (Rosseter, 2018).  However, it is not simply a matter of letting more students into nursing programs; because of the nursing shortage, there are not enough qualified instructors to teach in the nursing programs, which limits the number of people who can enroll in programs.  In addition to limits imposed by smaller faculties, there are other limits related to nursing schools, such as the amount of classroom space, the availability of clinical sites, clinical preceptors, and budget constraints.  Therefore, even though there is a projected shortfall for nurses, current nursing programs are not sufficient to remedy that problem.    Causes of the Nursing Shortage  Although the nursing shortage might be directly related to a problem in the number of qualified applicants that can actually get into nursing programs, there are a number of other factors that contribute to the nursing shortage.  The aging population of baby boomers means that there is a projected increase in demand for nursing services.  The current workforce of nurses is skewed older than many professions, which means that many nurses may be retiring, which will contribute to the shortage.

The current shortage is exacerbating the problem; without enough nurses to fill jobs, nurses in jobs are expected to take on more duties, which increases stress and decreases job satisfaction.  As a result, some nurses are leaving the profession.  All of these factors have exacerbated the existing nursing shortage.

Effects of the Nursing Shortage The nursing shortage has a number of different impacts, not only on the quality of healthcare that people can access, but also the demographics and dynamics of the nursing profession, itself.  First, it is important to recognize that the nursing shortage is a self-perpetuating problem.  Because the shortage decreases job satisfaction for nurses and results in people leaving the profession, it can actually increase stress on current nurses, resulting in more people leaving the profession.  The shortage of nurses also leads to a shortage of nurse educators, which makes it even more difficult to train more nurses.  One potential positive impact of the nursing shortage is that it could actually help lead to an increase in diversity in the nursing profession because of increased efforts at recruitment among males and among cultures that have not traditionally been part of the nursing profession.   In addition, the impact of the nursing shortage has impacted access to healthcare across the board.  While hospitals and other large patient-care facilities may still be able to attract and retain enough nurses, they are not the only healthcare facilities that need trained nurses.  Assisted living facilities, retirement communities, and senior housing facilities all need access to high-quality healthcare services, which means RNs who are capable of handling routine patient care at a higher level than nursing assistants.   However, the biggest impact of the nursing shortage is on patient care.  Without enough registered nurses, patient care suffers, often dramatically.  Nursing shortages often mean increased workloads for nurses.  Unfortunately, increased workloads can have a deadly impact on patient care, resulting in a significant increase in a patient’s risk of dying; increases in patient hospital readmission rates after being released; increases in preventable health problems like urinary tract infections and surgical site infections; increases in length of hospital stays; and higher failure-to-rescue rates (Rosseter, 2019).  Outside of a hospital setting, you still see a decline in patient care when there is a shortage of nurses.  Nurses are the frontline providers for medical care, and, oftentimes, nurses control whether patients can have access to a doctor.  Well-trained nurses are better able to identify emergency scenarios, assess patient health, and notify a doctor about medical concerns.

Having non-nurses, or lower-level non-RN nurses fill these roles means that some patients who should have access to higher care will be diverted away from the medical care that they need.   While the nursing shortage has increased demand for nurses in a variety of different types of healthcare facilities, it is interesting to note that the nurse shortage has not resulted in the expected increase in median nurse income.  The basic economics of supply and demand would suggest that, because of the shortage, nurse salaries would rise.  However, nurse salaries have not continued to rise, despite the shortage.  This lack of an anticipated effect may help compound the original shortage problem.

Nursing Shortage Statistics While there is an overall nursing shortage, that shortage does not translate to a shortage of nurses in all areas.  In fact, in some local areas, there may actually be a surplus of nurses, which can make it difficult for nurses to find employment in that area, thus encouraging some nurses to leave their jobs.  In contrast, some areas are projected to experience significant nursing shortages.  Texas and California, the most populous states, which both have significant and large medical centers, are both expected to face large nursing shortages.  In addition to looking at the overall population, you also have to consider the demographics of certain areas.  Areas which attract retirees may be more likely to face a nursing shortage than other areas.  Therefore, while New York is not projected to have a significant shortage, nearby New Jersey, with its rapid increase in skilled care, retirement villages, and nursing facilities, is projected to have a shortage in nurses.

According to the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis, a division of the U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, the following statistics apply to states’ 2030 RN supply and demand.  California, Texas, New Jersey, and South Carolina are expected to have shortages by 2030.  These shortages are 44,500 for California, 15,000 for Texas, 11,400 for New Jersey, and 10,400 for South Carolina.  In contrast, Florida, Ohio, Virginia, and New York are actually expected to experience nursing surpluses by that time.  The numbers for those states are surpluses of 53,700 in Florida, 49,100 in Ohio, 22,700 in Virginia, and 18,200 in New York (2017).   However, the shortages are exacerbated by projected shortfalls in LPNs.  By 2030, 33 states are expected to experience shortages in LPNs, with the largest deficits in Texas and Pennsylvania (National Center for Health Workforce Analysis, 2017).  When a state is expected to experience deficits in RNs and LPNs, one can predict an increased workload for all types of nurses employed within the state.   What Can Be Done to Prevent the Nursing Shortage? It is important to realize that the coming nursing shortage may be impossible to completely prevent, because the things that must change in order to increase the supply of available nurses may take time to change.  Nursing schools simply do not have enough available positions to train an adequate number of nurses to meet the expected shortfalls.  However, one must look at the fact that there are projected overages for nurses in some areas.  While no one in the industry seems to be discussing relocation of these nurses to areas with shortfalls as a viable option, the reality is that if nursing pay were to increase with demand for nurses, then it might be a viable option to suggest relocation as a way to help deal with the nursing shortage.  Another thing to keep in mind.