Addressing The Ongoing Healthcare Staffing Shortages

It is no secret that there is a nursing shortage across the country. According to a study done back in 2009, there was an estimated shortage of one million nurses by the year 2020. The Covid-19 pandemic only made this shortage worse. 

So why is the shortage continuing to get worse?

According to the Southern Medical Association (SMA), a number of issues are creating a shortage of nurses. 

• Retirement: A general population of the nursing workforce is reaching the age of retirement and according to SMA, in the next decade a third of the population will be 50 and older and getting ready for retirement. According to a 2018 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses conducted by the Health Resources and Services Administration found that the average age for an RN is 50 years old, which may signal a large wave of retirement over the next 15 years. 
• Bottlenecks in Education: The main bottlenecks in nursing schools are limitations on budget, faculty, and staff. AACN’s report on 2019-2020 Enrollment and Graduations in Baccalaureate and Graduate Programs in Nursing, U.S. nursing schools turned away 80,407 qualified applicants from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2019 due to an insufficient number of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, and clinical preceptors, as well as budget constraints.

What can facilities do to help fill in these gaps? 

At NeuroResorative Houston, a subacute and post-acute rehabilitation facility for people of all ages with brain, spinal cord, and medically complex injuries, they use FleetNurse. As the facility is currently trying to hire a staff of 25 nurses, they are using FleetNurse to help fill in those urgent gaps when needed. 

How can FleetNurse help?

FleetNurse helps improve staffing levels and reduces staffing-related costs for facilities while providing nurses and nursing assistants flexibility in their work lives. Using innovation and technology, FleetNurse has become a trusted labor partner that connects health systems to quality healthcare providers on demand. Healthcare professionals are allowed to work on a schedule that works for them, while healthcare facilities are able to fill shifts at the last minute.

Quality patient care and the well-being of healthcare professionals are both at the forefront of everything FleetNurse stands for. Through technology and servant leadership, FleetNurse's mission is to provide exceptional care anytime, anyplace.