Running Head: DYNAMIC HEALTH CARE
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9-2 Short Paper: Health Care Staffing Shortages
HRM 630
SNHU
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In the dynamic health care setting, staff shortage is a serious problem that could
impact the performance and productivity of the entire sector. In the article titled ‘What
Works: Healing the Healthcare Staffing Shortage,’ it has been identified the shortage of
staff in the health care domain has the potential to alter market settings and give rise to
complexities for health care executives. It has even been projected that in the coming three
to five years a large number of physicians as well as nursing professionals would start to
retire. Such a projection is a serious matter of concern because it can further escalate the
staff shortage problem in the health care landscape. The federal government had further
made the projection that by 2020, around 24,000 doctors and 1 million nurses would retire.
Such projections indicate that there is an urgent need to establish a well-designed workforce
plan in the health care domain. Such a plan can play an instrumental role to effectively deal
with the staff shortage problem.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified health workers as the
backbone of the entire health care system. They are the ones that ensure that the health
needs of the general public are met, and they are able to lead a quality life (Health
Workers: A global profile - world health organization, 2006). The shortage of staff problem
could lead to an imbalance in the health care setting, and it could also compromise the
quality-of-care solutions that are delivered to the vulnerable individuals and groups in the
society. In the prevailing health care setting, it is imperative to find a long-term solution to
address the workforce shortage problem. For instance, some of the major staff-related issues
that exist need to be identified and rectified. It has been revealed in the findings of the
article that at present, the process for educating and retaining new nursing professionals is
ineffective and broken. Similarly, the hospital leaders have always been in a denial when it
comes to acknowledging the dissatisfaction among nursing practitioners. Additionally,
executives and leaders operating in the health care landscape give high priority to the issues
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relating to payments and regulatory aspects and the workforce shortage issues are not
govern much thought. For addressing the workforce issues these areas need to be mended.
Otherwise, in the future, the lack of adequate number of nurses as well as doctors could
cripple the entire health care system and adversely affect the quality of health of individuals
in the society. The article has covered a very serious topic that has the potential to have an
impact on each and every individual who relies on health care services. It is vital to devise
suitable strategic interventions so that the staff shortage problem can be addressed. For
instance, technology-oriented training could be offered to the clinical and medical
professionals so that they could focus on the quality-of-care solutions that are delivered to
patients. Similarly, there is an opportunity to develop public-private partnerships so that
diverse parties can function in a collective manner for promoting nursing and physician
programs (Health Industries. PwC, 2021, p. 5).
The staff shortage problem in the health care domain could have an adverse impact
on the triangle of health care that involves access, cost and quality. The reduction in the
number of health care workers could diminish the ability of vulnerable individuals and
patients to access them as per their health needs. It could further hamper the quality of their
health and lead to negative health outcomes. Similarly, the reduction in the health staff
could increase the costs that patients pay to avail health care services from physicians and
doctors. It could not only increase the financial burden for individuals who are in urgent
need for care solutions, but it could also increase their health-related vulnerability. The rise
in cost relating to health care services and solutions could further increase its inaccessibility
for people belonging to low-income groups. In terms of quality of care, the shortage of
health care staff would also act as a major source of issue. The reduced staff members may
feel burdened to meet the rising health needs of the public. It could negatively affect their
ability to deliver quality health care solutions. Thus, it could negatively affect the quality of
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health outcome of vulnerable individuals. Hence the shortage of health care workforce is a
serious issue that could intensify in the future and lead to inefficiency, imbalance, and poor
performance of the entire health care system. Since health care is one of the fundamental
needs for an individual, the staff-related issue in the health care domain could spill over and
it could affect other industries, sectors and areas. It is critical to find long-term solutions to
resolve the health care staffing problem so that the entire health care system can continue to
operate efficiently.
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References
Health Workers: A global profile - world health organization. (2006). Retrieved March 1,
2022, from https://www.who.int/whr/2006/06_chap1_en.pdf
Health Industries. PwC. (2021). Retrieved March 1, 2022, from
https://www.pwc.com/healthindustries
