Discussion of Competing Needs -Nursing Shortage Affects Policies Essay

Discussion of Competing Needs -Nursing Shortage Affects Policies Essay

Discussion of Competing Needs -Nursing Shortage Affects Policies Essay

World demographic shifts have led to a significant increase in the senior population and a declining number of births, which have influenced health policy and healthcare systems in numerous nations. Both procedures call for changes to the global healthcare system. This setting makes nursing care, which has experienced a human resources crisis, a critical sector. The AACN is working with institutions, decision-makers, nursing organizations, and the media to make people more aware of this healthcare concern (Haddad et al., 2022). To alleviate the shortage, AACN is using its resources to sway policy, develop strategies, and forge alliances.

Competing Needs and Policies

Conflicting demands, such as those of patients, personnel, and resources, may affect how a policy is established since these needs should complement the agenda that certain policy is pushing. For instance, a policy addressing sufficient nurse staffing is necessary to satisfy patient and worker requirements while reducing costs. To guarantee efficient healthcare service delivery in terms of quantity, efficiency, and cost, the personnel must be effectively utilized and deployed (Kelly & Porr, 2018). A shortage or excess of clinical professionals might result from an inability to deploy and use the workforce efficiently. For instance, a surplus of clinical personnel may lead to financial inefficiencies and improper resource allocation while passing for an acceptable staffing level. Due to a lack of resources to provide the necessary services, there will be a decrease in both the quantity and quality of care provided. Overworked nurses will eventually experience burnout, which will compromise patient safety. There will be unnecessary patient fatalities as a result of long wait times brought on by a lack of staff.

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Competing Needs and Workload

A good fit between the expectations of nursing staff and those of patients is one of the competing demands that might have an impact on workload as a problem for national healthcare. To guarantee quality and safety of care as well as great patient services while ensuring that operational expenses are manageable, organizations are looking into strategies to achieve a healthy balance between the competence and quantity of nursing staff and patient demands. According to studies, nursing capacity needs to be as closely matched to patient demands as possible (Marć et al., 2019). This may be done by distributing nurses fairly and sensibly throughout units, which will result in an equitably distributed burden that is manageable for the nursing staff. This demands that the requirements of the nursing staff and those of the patients be well-balanced. The management of the nursing staff workload is one strategy for establishing an optimal balance. This helps strike a balance between the resources that are needed and those that are already on hand, preventing additional expenses from understaffing a unit and a reduction in worker engagement.

Needed Policies

The requirements of patients, workers, and resources of an organization are all impacted by workload. High levels of burnout result in mistakes and subpar patient outcomes. Excessive workload affects nurses’ intention to leave the profession as well as their job satisfaction and burnout. High staff turnover among nurses raises the cost of hiring temporary workers or hiring new nurses. By guaranteeing an ideal nurse-to-patient ratio, a policy may be able to balance these competing objectives while also enhancing nurse staffing in healthcare organizations and patient care results (Milliken, 2018). A particular nurse-to-patient ratio may be specified by the policy depending upon the type of unit within a healthcare facility. In a medical or surgical unit, for instance, one nurse will be assigned to a maximum of five patients, but in an acute unit, the proportion may be 2:1. According to research, a facility’s staffing policy may enhance patient care quality and safety as well as the working circumstances for the nursing staff. In turn, expenditures associated with sticking to the ratios can be compensated by a decrease in the requirement to hire and train temporary or new nurses, as well as a decrease in nursing staff turnover.

References

Haddad, L. M., Toney-Butler, T. J., & Annamaraju, P. (2022, February 22). Nursing shortage. National Library of Medicine; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK493175/

Kelly, P., & Porr, C. (2018). Ethical Nursing Care Versus Cost Containment: Considerations to Enhance RN Practice. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.3912/ojin.vol23no01man06

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. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12473

Milliken, A. (2018). Ethical Awareness: What It Is and Why It Matters. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 23(1), 2–2. https://doi.org/10.3912/OJIN.Vol23No01Man01

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MODULE 2 Assignment

• American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statementsLinks to an external site.. Silver Spring, MD: Author. Retrieved from

https://www.nursingworld.org/coe-view-only

Note: Review all, with special attention to “Provision 6” (pp. 23–26).

• Kelly, P., & Porr, C. (2018). Ethical nursing care versus cost containment: Considerations to enhance RN practiceLinks to an external site.. OJIN: Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 23(1), Manuscript 6. doi:10.3912/OJIN.Vol23No01Man06. Retrieved from

http://ojin.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol-23-2018/No1-Jan-2018/Ethical-Nursing-Cost-Containment.html

• Milliken, A. (2018). Ethical awareness: What it is and why it mattersLinks to an external site.. OJIN: Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 23(1), Manuscript 1. doi:10.3912/OJIN.Vol23No01Man01. Retrieved from

http://ojin.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol-23-2018/No1-Jan-2018/Ethical-Awareness.html

Quite often, nurse leaders are faced with ethical dilemmas, such as those associated with choices between competing needs and limited resources. Resources are finite, and competition for those resources occurs daily in all organizations.

For example, the use of 12-hour shifts has been a strategy to retain nurses. However, evidence suggests that as nurses work more hours in a shift, they commit more errors. How do effective leaders find a balance between the needs of the organization and the needs of ensuring quality, effective, and safe patient care?

In this Discussion, you will reflect on a national healthcare issue and examine how competing needs may impact the development of polices to address that issue.

Post an explanation of how competing needs, such as the needs of the workforce, resources, and patients, may impact the development of policy. Then, describe any specific competing needs that may impact the national healthcare issue/stressor you selected. What are the impacts, and how might policy address these competing needs? Be specific and provide examples.   Post an explanation of how competing needs, such as the needs of the workforce, resources, and patients, may impact the development of policy. Then, describe any specific competing needs that may impact the national healthcare issue/stressor you selected. What are the impacts, and how might policy address these competing needs? Be specific and provide examples.  Nursing Shortages and policies and STRATEGIES TO OVERCOME.