Nursing shortage

The performance of the healthcare sector highly depends on the nursing effort. However, there has been an increased shortage currently of the nursing profession due to the increase in the aging population, rising health service demand, the retirement of workers, increased burnout, and an unconducive working environment, among others. Therefore, for the healthcare services to be improved to enhance patients' experience, there is a need for more nurses. For instance, increasing the number of nurses reduces the workload per person, improving their mental and physical health and delivering quality health services. In conducting the research, the PubMed database is used to search for relevant articles using key terms such as "nursing shortage," " nursing burnout," and "physical and mental health of nurses." As a result, the most relevant articles were selected for the paper. Therefore, the research on the nursing shortage using the PubMed database indicates a global need for more nursing professionals to curb the deficit and burnout.

Marć, M., Bartosiewicz, A., Burzyńska, J., Chmiel, Z., & Januszewicz, P. (2018). A nursing shortage - a prospect of global and local policies. International Nursing Review, 66(1), 9-16. doi.org/10.1111/inr.12473

Research conducted by Marc et al. to determine the causes of nursing shortage globally indicates that the lack of nurses impacts countries globally. The drastic change is significantly associated with the reduced birth rate and the high rate of an aging population. However, although no single local or global measure is attributed to it, factors such as ineffective use and management of resources allocated for nursing, poor recruitment planning, and global demographic changes contribute to the nursing profession's shortage. For example, when the working environment is unconducive, it could scare away students from pursuing the nursing profession, reducing the number of qualified nurses available. Therefore, the primary suggestions for the nursing policies include enhancing the conditions for hiring a working environment and incorporating technological and mobile techniques to strengthen healthcare.

Parsons, J. (2019). Addressing Workforce Challenges in Healthcare Calls for Proactive Leadership. Frontiers Of Health Services Management, 35(4), 11-17. doi.org/10.1097/hap.0000000000000058

According to Parsons, there are many challenges in the healthcare sector, but the most significant is the workforce challenge. However, most of these challenges could be mitigated with review and appropriate planning. However, the research indicates that there is an increasing change in the supply and demand for new healthcare workers. Therefore, when planning for the workforce, healthcare leaders should consider the rate of retention, retirement, and turnover rates as the nursing demand is expected to rise rapidly in the coming years. Therefore, the study indicates that nursing leaders must strategize in workforce planning to avoid workforce shortages.

Drennan, V., & Ross, F. (2019). Global nurse shortages—the facts, the impact and action for change. British Medical Bulletin, 130(1), 25-37. doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldz014

In 2014, the shortage of nurses was estimated at nine million. However, by 2030, it was predicted to have dropped by two million. However, the study aimed to establish the facts and impacts of the current nursing shortages. However, to address the issue, there has to be an informed model for supply and demand at all levels. Although there could be differences in nursing practice scope, education, and level in different countries, the bottom line is that there is a surge in the nurses' demand in all nations. However, improving workforce planning to establish a sustainable health system. Still, more examination should be conducted to determine the changes in tasks and their impact on the scope of practice. Therefore, despite the differences in policies, education, and nursing scope, all countries are impacted by the nursing shortage crisis.

Across the three studies, it is evident that there is an increasing rate of nursing shortage across different countries in the world. The primary roots of the deficiency are poor workforce planning and changes in demographic composition. Some of the recommendations to mitigate the shortage include proper workforce planning, establishing a sustainable health system, redefining the nurse scope of practice, shifting tasks, incorporating innovative strategies in healthcare, and improving working conditions to increase the rate of workforce retention and attract new professionals. However, there still needs more investigation on the causes of the increased demand for healthcare services necessitating the rapid increase in healthcare workers to avoid burnout. Therefore, the evidence from the above literature review indicates that there is a global demand for nurses, which requires effective workforce planning and a sustainable system to mitigate the crisis.

The difference between the summaries and synthesizing is that synthesizing provides a broader view of the nursing shortage issue. For instance, the summaries contain different perspectives regarding the nursing shortage, its impact, and possible solutions. In contrast, the synthesis combines the various views to create a more comprehensive view. For instance, the recommendations are broader, including proper workforce planning, establishing a sustainable health system, redefining the nurse scope of practice, shifting tasks, incorporating innovative strategies in healthcare, and improving working conditions to increase the rate of workforce retention and attract new professionals.

The research on the nursing shortage using the PubMed database indicates a global need for more nursing professionals to curb the deficit and burnout. The leading suggestions for the nursing policies include enhancing the hiring and working environment conditions and incorporating technological and mobile techniques to strengthen healthcare. Therefore, despite the differences in policies, education, and nursing scope, all countries are impacted by the nursing shortage crisis.

References

Drennan, V., & Ross, F. (2019). Global nurse shortages—the facts, the impact and action for change. British Medical Bulletin, 130(1), 25-37. doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldz014Marć, M., Bartosiewicz, A., Burzyńska, J., Chmiel, Z., & Januszewicz, P. (2018). A nursing shortage - a prospect of global and local policies. International Nursing Review, 66(1), 9-16. doi.org/10.1111/inr.12473

Parsons, J. (2019). Addressing Workforce Challenges in Healthcare Calls for Proactive Leadership. Frontiers Of Health Services Management, 35(4), 11-17. doi.org/10.1097/hap.0000000000000058