Nursing Shortage Effects

Case Study # 103032

Labor Studies
Medical and Health > Nursing

This paper looks at the effects of the nursing shortage on an emergency department.

1,215 words () | 6 sources | APA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that while the universal perceived shortage of health care personnel is serious in that its major impacts on health care delivery can be felt by patients directly, no other profession is harder hit than the nursing profession. The writer discusses the effects of the shortage of nurses concentrating on an emergency department. The organization selected for discussion is the emergency department of a community-based teaching hospital that provides tertiary care for the surrounding community and most of the county. The writer concludes that while it is understandable that operations cannot be encumbered by inexperienced personnel, the core values of nurses as coaches and mentors should be shown as an example for younger staff to follow and respect, regardless of the situation or even the fact that the hospital is not a full-fledged teaching institution unto itself.

Outline:
Introduction
Problem Identification
Leadership Behaviors
Cultural Diversity Issues
Problem Resolution and Recommendations for Improvement
Implications and Conclusions

From the Paper:

"To increase the number of candidates, the experience criteria was dropped, favoring new graduates on the premise that they could be more easily taught to conform to the system instead of more experienced nurses firmly set in the manner in which they practice. Although the nurse managers maintained an open-door policy, this was rarely utilized by the junior nurses in voicing their complaints."
"The senior nurses, who had been practicing in the department for several years, were recognized as informal leaders on the floor and were valued for their operational, "field" input. This was almost always the charge nurse and one other senior per shift. They also adapted the leadership style of their superiors, as department operations were already efficient enough to run without management and coordination."

Sample of Sources Used:

Aiken LH, Clarke SP, Sloane DM, Sochalski J & Silber JH. (2002). Hospital nurse staffing and patient mortality, nurse burnout, and job dissatisfaction. JAMA, 288(16), 1987-93. Retrieved March 31, 2007 from http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/288/16/1987#TABLEJOC20547T4
Hall DJ, Garnett ST, Barnes T & Stevens M. (2007). Drivers of professional mobility in the Northern Territory: dental professionals. Rural Remote Health, 7(1), 655. Retrieved March 31, 2007 from http://www.rrh.org.au/articles/subviewnew.asp?ArticleID=655
Holtom BC & O'Neill BS. (2004). Job embeddedness: a theoretical foundation for developing a comprehensive nurse retention plan. J Nurs Adm., 34(5), 216-27. Retrieved March 30, 2007 from the Pubmed Database.
Palese, A., Pantali, G. & Saiani, L. (2006). The management of a multigenerational nursing team with differing qualifications: a qualitative study. The Health Care Manager, 25(2), 173-183. Retrieved March 30, 2007 from the Ovid database.
Stuenkel, D., Cohen, J. & de la Cuesta, K. (2005). The multigenerational nursing work force: essential differences in perception of work environment. The Journal of Nursing Administration, 35(6), 283-5. Retrieved March 31, 2007 from the Ovid database.