Assignment: Responses

Assignment: Responses

Hello Farid,

Your post has offered an in-depth analysis of how staffing shortages impact healthcare practitioners. I think healthcare is one of the professionals that ought to have sufficient human personnel considering the risks that staff shortages and overtime have on the health outcomes of patients (Norful et al., 2018). My biggest concern regarding staffing shortages is where the blame should be redirected to policymakers, the healthcare system, or hospitals for undervaluing practices that ensure patients receive quality and human-centered care. Unlike during the pandemic period, when a large majority of the population had to be admitted to the hospital, it was obvious to experience a staff shortage. However, given that the U.S has millions of registered and licensed nurses, it is hard to believe that hospitals are still in shortage (Xue et al., 2016). I think that to overcome this challenge; there should be transparency among all stakeholders to ensure that wages and retention of healthcare staff do not compromise the quality of care. You have mentioned that appropriate staffing can be made to ensure that efficiency and productivity will increase; however, there will be high staff retention levels. It is evident that organizational behavior, a foundation of human resource management, should be incorporated more into the healthcare system to increase job performance and job fulfillment (Norful et al., 2018). Organizational behavior theory, which supports problem-solving and the implementation of novel techniques to address the nursing shortage, is critical to the success of healthcare centers.

References

Norful, A. A., De Jacq, K., Carlino, R. & Poghosyan, L. (2018). Nurse practitioner-physician comanagement: A theoretical model to alleviate primary care strain. The Annals of Family Medicine, 16 (3), 250-256. Doi:10.1370/afm.2230

Xue, Y., Ye, Z., Brewer, C., & Spetz, J. (2016). Impact of state nurse practitioner scope-of-practice regulation on health care delivery: a systematic review. Nurs Outlook; 64(1):71-85.

Hello Alija,

Your post is quite insightful as it has offered statistical data, which has enabled me to visualize the deficit in physicians that is to be expected soon. However, I would like to know which measures and how they can be implemented to ensure that such a prediction does not come to pass. For example, it is hard to imagine how the psychiatric facility you work in functions when it is understaffed. In most situations, practitioners have to offer direct care to each patient individually. Similarly, given that deficiency in staff personnel will increase while the human population increases, it will reach a point that physicians and nurses will become overwhelmed at their jobs (Norful et al., 2018). I would also like to know how patient monitoring can be automated to reduce direct observation and intervention by nurses so that their skills can be put to better use. The adoption of health information technology enhances nurses’ coordination. For example, nurses can track staff and workflow and thus effectively communicate on areas and processes requiring improvements. Therefore, nurses can ensure that patients receive the necessary care. 

References

Norful, A. A., De Jacq, K., Carlino, R. & Poghosyan, L. (2018). Nurse practitioner-physician comanagement: A theoretical model to alleviate primary care strain. The Annals of Family Medicine, 16 (3), 250-256. Doi:10.1370/afm.2230

Xue, Y., Ye, Z., Brewer, C., & Spetz, J. (2016). Impact of state nurse practitioner scope-of-practice regulation on health care delivery: a systematic review. Nurs Outlook; 64(1):71-85.