Shortage of health care staff in the recent past has continued to spark different reactions from different sectors around the world. There have been notable changes in the number of staffs in the health care sector which is raising questions concerning the future of the health care sector. The health care sector has been experiencing shortages of staff especially due to a decrease in the number of registered nurses and the retirement rate in this sector.
In the past, the health care sector did not have staffing problems but in the recent past, most people are shunning nursing career for other fulfilling careers. This trend is attributed to the poor working condition of the nurses as well as low pay and overworking. Shortage of staff around the world is bound to have significant effects on the health care sector as well as the economy of the world. Deaths have resulted as a result of understaffing in different health care centers which raises the question future effectiveness of the health care sector.
Different causes have been attributed to this diminishing number of health care workers among them poor working conditions, overworking and government policies which have made career in nursing and other health related fields undesirable. Quick measures to correct this scenario need to be undertaken to ensure that the health sector which is one of the most vital sectors in the world will not collapse (Eagleton, n. d, para 2-4). Causes of shortages of staffs in the health care sector
In the United States, more than 126,000 positions for nurses were unfilled by the year 2004 according to the report of joint commission, a non profit making health care group based in terrace. Such shortages were blamed for increased deaths in the country and other injuries in the health care. This scenario is repeated in most of the countries around the world thus calling for immediate correction of this picture. One of the major contributors to such an occurrence is the ratio of retirement as compared to that of recruitment.
Most of the nurses have retired while no recruitment has been undertaken by the government thus reducing the number or practicing nurses and health care workers. Using the case of United States, more that 24,000 doctors and almost one million nurses are expected retire by the year 2020 leading to a further shortage of nurses. Most of the governments undertook a cost reduction strategy in the health care sector which saw few health care workers being recruited leading to shortages in the number of practicing nurses and doctors.
Retirement of the health care workers and the subsequent non recruitment of the same have been the major contributors to health worker shortages in the United States as well as other parts of the world (Ginty, 2004, para 1-3). Another possible cause of the dwindling number of staffs in the health care sector is due to the working conditions in this sector. As most governments undertook a cost reduction strategy in health care sectors, this led to a reduction in the number of workers leaving the few workers to carry out all the tasks in the hospitals.
Workers in the health care sector are overworked and most of them work for more than 20 hours a day. Such harsh working conditions have made it undesirable for other people to join the profession. Also, some of the practicing nurses and doctors have also left the profession due to such un-conducive terms of employment. Instead of attracting potential health care workers, the conditions of the already practicing workers hinder others from joining the health care sector (Feldstein, 2004, pp 75).