When the World Needs Healers, Nurses Show Up

With a Shortage of Nurses in the U.S. Expect A Rise in Quality Professional Nurse Placement Services

The U.S. has been grappling with a shortage of nurses and other healthcare professionals for decades, but as the population ages, the problem is getting increasingly more urgent.

Nurses help individuals and families get through the most challenging and emotional times of their lives, and it is the time compassionate, professional nurses spend with patients and their loved ones that can make the difference in a full recovery and continuation of life. Or, when the time comes for a family member or friend to pass on, nurses, including gifted hospice nurses, become a source of wisdom, comfort and the ability for the family to move on, knowing whomever passed did so in as much peace and with as little pain as possible.

Without nurses, lives fall apart.

With nurses, lives and transitions in life can be moments filled with unexpected joy and light.

Which is just one reason why hospitals, clinics, medical centers, assisted living, hospice and urgent care facilities should consider looking at new ways they can ensure coverage even as budgets are tight as costs are being cut.

In addition to the aging population, we are experience in the U.S. a rising incidence of chronic disease, an aging nursing workforce, and all this while a very positive movement is underway to eat healthier, exercise and “own and operate” our own bodies.

It’s not that people don’t want to become nurses. Far from it! There are millions of passionate and compassionate nurses and students in nursing schools.

• 3 million nurses make up the largest segment of the health-care workforce in the U.S.
• Nursing is currently one of the fastest-growing occupations in the country

Still, demand is outpacing supply. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

• 2 million vacancies will emerge for registered nurses between 2014 and 2022
• Between 2010 and 2030, the population of senior citizens will increase by 75 percent to 69 million
• In 2050, an estimated 88.5 million people in the U.S. will be aged 65 and older

But growing demand is only part of the problem. Around a million registered nurses (RNs) are currently older than 50, meaning one-third of the current nursing workforce will reach retirement age in the next 10 to 15 years.

And the next generation of nurses have grown up having access to more flexible lives, and like many millennials wish to live and work in such a way that they can enjoy raising a family with flexible working conditions not usually associated with the twelve and even twenty-four hour shifts are scheduled in today’s stressed out hospitals.

Texas is one state where the nursing shortage has already caused a crisis. In a 2012 paper titled “United States Registered Nurse Workforce Report Card and Shortage Forecast,” researchers forecasted RN job shortages in each state and assigned a letter grade accordingly. Along with other states, Texas was projected to receive a failing “F” along with Georgia, Texas, Virginia, Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and New Mexico.

When facing a nursing shortage, hospitals often have no choice but to limit beds which only causes a “downward spiral” in the overall economic model. They are asking nurses to work longer hours, they are offering bonuses when nurses agree to extra shifts, and they are more and more relying on agencies who can place nurses for short and long-term assignments.

While such “freelance” nurses often come at a premium, there are also agencies like All Pro Staffing, willing to work with hospitals on partnered solutions that bring tremendous flexibility to the hospital without breaking the bank.

And for those “freelance” nurses, they are able to live a more flexible lifestyle, and even more importantly, benefit from amazing experiences working in a variety of environments, with a variety of colleagues, continually learning and practicing their avocation.

In the new “gig economy,” professional nurses and the healthcare providers they serve have the opportunity to address the shortage and ensure we are able to modernize how we staff up to serve. This is the vision that drives All Pro Staffing to create a vibrant, high quality, professional, flexible and effective offering, moving the healthcare industry and its most passionate people and largest institutions forward – together.

Sabrina