Introduction
Staffing shortages in healthcare facilities have been a persistent issue that continues to challenge the attempts to provide patients with quality care. Staffing shortages result in increased workloads for the existing staff and have potential impacts on patient care. Addressing the issue of staffing shortages in healthcare seeks to come up with a solution as a way of facilitating effective service delivery. Over the years, staffing shortages have been identified as a major reason for nurse burnout while serving patients in hospitals. This paper aims to explore the best practices for addressing staffing shortages in healthcare facilities. The paper provides an annotated bibliography and key findings on the issue of staffing shortages, concluding with a reflection on how the learning experiences derived from the activity.
Article Selection Process
The selection of the relevant literature on staffing shortages in healthcare was facilitated by conducting electronic searches on various databases. These databases included PubMed and CINAHL, which were made possible by the Capella Library. To limit the results of the search, I used the keywords nurse-to-patient ratio, healthcare recruitment, and workload. The criteria for selection of the articles were based on selecting peer-reviewed articles that were not more than five years old to ensure that the selected articles were current and covered the nursing issue based on the current status.
Assessment of Credibility
The assessment of the credibility of the selected articles was informed by the examination of the academic qualifications of the authors, the determination of other studies that have been conducted by the researcher, and their utilization of the peer-review process. Articles were also subjected to the examination of the reliability of the sources of data and the methodology and explored whether they abide by the research standards. The use of reliable databases for search further enhanced the credibility of the selected articles.
Annotated Bibliography
Leong, S. L., Teoh, S. L., Fun, W. H., & Lee, S. W. H. (2021). Task shifting in primary care to tackle healthcare worker shortages: An umbrella review.
The study provides an examination of task shifts as a way of addressing staffing shortages in healthcare settings to facilitate effectiveness in clinical care delivery. The study entailed a systematic review of studies that covered task shifting in primary care. The findings of the study established that task shifting among nurses and clinical physicians significantly improved access to care and reduced the rates of burnout among the staff members. The study also found that task shifting among hospital staff improves health outcomes such as mental health, blood pressure, and HbA1c while also enhancing cost savings. The article significantly provides reliable insights on how the problem of staff shortages in hospitals can best be managed by utilizing the already existing staff to ensure that there is effective and efficient provision of care while at the same time enhancing the well-being of the staff members.
Griffiths, P., Saville, C., Ball, J. E., Jones, J., Monks, T., & Safer Nursing Care Tool study team. (2021).
This study seeks to establish the most effective strategies that can be utilized to ensure resilient and flexible staffing options that can address staff shortages and ensure the delivery of cost-effective hospital care. The study utilizes simulation and economic modeling approaches. The findings of the study showed that shift-by-shift measurement of patient demands can be an essential guide to flexible staff deployment, although there is a need to ensure that the baseline number of staff is sufficient. Proper staffing results in improved outcomes and cost savings, although an increase in nursing staff can lead to higher costs. The article’s inclusion was based on its ability to provide simulated findings and its approach to addressing staffing shortages in healthcare facilities.
Gaffney, T. (2022). Retaining nurses to mitigate shortages. American Nurse Journal, 17(1), 14-17.
This article explores the strategies that can be utilized to enhance the retention rates of nurses as a way of addressing staffing shortages. According to this article, an aging workforce and challenging work environment, as well as nursing burnout, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic experiences, are major contributing factors to staffing shortages. To address this problem, the article proposes flexible staffing and coming up with effective organizational policies, including compensation and the use of innovative models of care. The selection of this journal was based on the fact that it identifies the causes of the low nurse retention rates and comes up with strategies that can be utilized to address the problem by increasing nurse retention rates.
Shaffer, F. A., Bakhshi, M., Cook, K., & Álvarez, T. D. (2022). International nurse recruitment beyond the COVID-19 pandemic
The article provides insights on how international nurse recruitment can be used to enhance workforce recruitment in nursing. This article utilizes the approach of recruitment campaigns as one of the most effective ways of addressing staffing shortages. In the United States, the recruitment of International Students has proved to be an effective measure of increasing the nursing workforce, highlighting some of the key considerations that should be put into place to build diverse and sustainable workforces. Such concerns include economic and cultural benefits and ethical considerations to find a balance between brain drain and brain gain. Thus, the article is useful as it provides the major considerations that should be observed when recruiting international nurses during periods of shortages.
Reflection
From my research, I learned that the healthcare system is faced with a serious staffing challenge that threatens its operations. The problem can, however, be addressed by the use of strategies such as task shifting, recruitment campaigns, and effective nurse retention strategies. The research provided me with an understanding of the various factors that need to be taken into consideration when selecting the appropriate method for recruiting nurses, especially from different countries, and coming up with a retention strategy. Essentially, the sources enhanced my understanding of the issues that face healthcare, especially in regard to staffing shortages, and the approaches that can be used to address the challenge.
References
Gaffney, T. (2022). Retaining nurses to mitigate shortages. American Nurse Journal, 17(1), 14-17.
Griffiths, P., Saville, C., Ball, J. E., Jones, J., Monks, T., & Safer Nursing Care Tool study team. (2021). Beyond ratios-flexible and resilient nurse staffing options to deliver cost-effective hospital care and address staff shortages: A simulation and economic modeling study. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 117, 103901.
Leong, S. L., Teoh, S. L., Fun, W. H., & Lee, S. W. H. (2021). Task shifting in primary care to tackle healthcare worker shortages: An umbrella review. European Journal of General Practice, 27(1), 198-210.
Shaffer, F. A., Bakhshi, M., Cook, K., & Álvarez, T. D. (2022). International nurse recruitment beyond the COVID-19 pandemic: Considerations for the nursing workforce leader. Nurse Leader, 20(2), 161-167.
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