Developing Organizational Policies and Practices

Student

University

class

Ridgeview Institute of Monroe

March 12, 2022

Analysis of a Pertinent Healthcare Issue

Nurses are an essential part of healthcare delivery and account for the most significant number of healthcare professionals. Haddad, Annamaraju, and Toney-Butler (2020) report approximately 4 million nurses in the US. They further report that more than 1 million additional nurses will be required in the next few years. This is because there is a chronic nursing shortage that is adversely impacting healthcare service delivery. The need is attributed to various factors, including high turnover, limited potential educators, and inequitable workforce distribution (Marć et al., 2019). This paper aims to explore the issue of nursing shortage by highlighting how it affects burnout among nurses and negatively affects patient care. 

National Healthcare Issue/Stressor and Impact in the Organization

According to Haddad, Annamaraju, and Toney-Butler (2020), the nursing shortage has a direct and negative impact on patient care. There is a clear correlation between nurse shortage and patient mortality. Every 1,000 days, a full-time RN reduces inpatient mortality by 4.3%. Fewer nurses led to a 2% to 7% rise in the mortality rate in hospitals (Haddad, Annamaraju & Toney-Butler, 2020). The scarcity of nurses is another critical element of the overcrowding of emergency rooms. In 92 percent of all emergency departments, overpopulation is causing more extended hospital stays, more treatments, lasting damage, or even death in certain situations. Medical errors are more likely to occur when facilities are overcrowded. Hospital patients had to wait long periods to see a physician because of a scarcity of nurses.

According to a poll, patients at three out of four hospitals had to wait more than three hours for a consultation (Marć et al., 2019). A lack of nurses leads to an increase in medication errors. More than half of all nurses admitted to making pharmacological mistakes last year. Misusing or giving out the wrong medicine might be harmful. With a lack of RNs, it's hardly surprising that just half of them are satisfied with their salaries. Students who enroll in nursing programs should be paid more and given incentives. Also, keep an eye out for members of underrepresented groups. As a result of implementing this plan, the sector will benefit from more diversity, better access to top talent, and a reduction in labor shortages (Marć et al., 2019). It is also important to note that those presently employed as RNs who want to progress in their career will benefit from further training and education. As a result of their continued education and development, nurses are more likely to remain in their current positions.

In my organization, nursing shortage has resulted in three major chronic issues. First, there is the issue of burnout. Nurses often resign from the organization due to various reasons. Some change their careers, those that focus on raising families, and those that go to organizations with more competitive pay, among other reasons. The problem is that the remaining nurses are often tasked with additional duties before more recruitments. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the nursing shortage resulted in severe nurse burnout since all of them had to work overtime and fill up for those who had either left the organization or those diagnosed with the virus.

Second, the nursing shortage has led to poor staffing ratios. In turn, this has adversely impacted things like mortality rates, morbidity rates, and errors. An audit of all the undesirable healthcare practices by nurses in my organization often reveals that 75% of the mistakes made by nurses can be attributed to poor staffing ratios. When a nurse is tasked with serving many patients, the likelihood of the professional making a mistake is high. Hence, the nursing shortage in my organization is mainly responsible for many cases of low-quality healthcare services delivered to patients.

Summary of Reviews of Healthcare Issue/Stressor Addressed in Other Organizations

The first article that focuses on this topic is titled "Analysis of a Government Policy to Address Nursing Shortage and Nursing Education Quality" by Abhicharttibutra et al. (2017). This article explores how government policy-making can be leveraged to enhance nursing education quality and improve nursing capacity. Abhicharttibutra et al. (2017) assert that healthcare stakeholders can learn from past mistakes and establish better policies through the analysis of current workforce policies. However, they reiterate that nurses should be actively involved during all policy phases if nursing shortages are to be comprehensively addressed.

The second article is titled "The Function of Patient‐Centered Care in Mitigating the Effect of Nursing Shortage on the Outcomes of Care" by Jarrar et al. (2018). This article examines the relationship between patient-centered care and the nursing shortage. Jarrar et al. (2018) argue that patient-centeredness is vital in mitigating the negative relationship between nursing shortage and poor healthcare outcomes for patients. Jarrar et al. (2018) further develop a guide that all healthcare stakeholders can use to maintain appropriate nursing staff levels while facilitating safe and high-quality healthcare service provision.

Strategies Used to Address the Organizational Impact of National Issues/Stressors

Several strategies are being used to address the organizational impact of the nursing shortage. First, there is the use of technology. Lambooij, Drewes, and Koster (2017) reveal that introducing various technological tools such as Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) has been instrumental in reducing nursing turnover. Nursing informatics has been primarily instrumental in reducing nurses from different direct patient care areas. By reducing nurses' workload, these technologies minimize nurse burnout, increase job satisfaction, and reduce nursing shortages. However, comprehensive education on using these technologies is vital for nurses to fully embrace them (Lambooij, Drewes, & Koster, 2017).

Second, there is the empowerment strategy. Haddad, Annamaraju, and Toney-Butler (2020) assert that organizations ought to be creative in meeting nurses' needs while facilitating high-quality patient care. Many organizations motivate and empower nurses to rejuvenate them and sustain their workforces. For example, promoting empowerment in autonomy in the decisions regarding staffing ratios leads to a reduction in nurses' burnout. In turn, many nurses have a reduced desire to leave their professions. Finally, there is the strategy of accommodating nurses' professional and personal needs. Many nurses quit their careers due to maintaining a work-life balance. Hence, various organizations are offering their nurses the flexibility in designing and choosing work shifts to meet their obligations; in turn, this strategy promotes greater wellness and satisfaction among nurses.

Conclusion

This paper has explored the issue of nursing shortage by highlighting how it affects burnout among nurses and negatively affects patient care. Currently, there is a chronic nursing shortage that is adversely impacting healthcare service delivery. The need is attributed to various factors, including high turnover, limited potential educators, and inequitable workforce distribution. However, there are specific strategies such as the use of technology, empowerment, and accommodating nurses' professional and personal needs that can increase nurses' job satisfaction and reduce nursing turnover. Regardless of the strategy aimed at lowering nursing shortages, nurses must be actively involved during all policy phases if the issue of nursing shortages is to be comprehensively addressed.

Abhicharttibutra, K., Kunaviktikul, W., Turale, S., Wichaikhum, O. A., & Srisuphan, W. (2017). Analysis of a government policy to address nursing shortage and nursing education quality. International Nursing Review, 64(1), 22-32.

Haddad, L. M., Annamaraju, P., & Toney-Butler, T. J. (2020). Nursing shortage. StatPearls [Internet].

Jarrar, M. T., Rahman, H. A., Minai, M. S., AbuMadini, M. S., & Larbi, M. (2018). The function of patient‐centered care in mitigating the effect of nursing shortage on the outcomes of care. The International Journal of Health Planning and Management, 33(2), e464-e473.

Lambooij, M. S., Drewes, H. W., & Koster, F. (2017). Use of electronic medical records and quality of patient data: Different reaction patterns of doctors and nurses to the hospital organization. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, 17(1), 1-11.

Marć, M., Bartosiewicz, A., Burzyńska, J., Chmiel, Z., & Januszewicz, P. (2019). A nursing shortage – A prospect of global and local policies. International Nursing Review, 66(1), 9-16.