Inflation has increased the prices for goods and services, putting pressure on workers and health systems to increase wages, Bloomberg reported Nov. 19.
The CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian, Steven Corwin, MD, told Bloomberg that the hospital is struggling with staffing shortages and wage pressure amid inflation.
Inflation reached a three-decade high in October, causing significant price hikes for many goods and services, including essentials like groceries and fuel. Food prices have increased 5.4 percent from a year ago, according to The Wall Street Journal.
This has created many challenges for people, including hospital staff. Almost 15 percent of NewYork-Presbyterian staff require access to food bank resources. That amounts to almost 7,200 employees.
"A substantial increase in bread, milk, egg price, let alone gasoline price, that's not made up for by a 3 or 4 percent wage increase," Dr. Corwin told Bloomberg. "That creates substantial wage pressure, so we're seeing an inflationary spiral without question."
He said high turnover rates and travel nurse competition are also straining the system.