The nation’s growing gulf between nurse supply and demand is negatively affecting some of the most critical aspects of healthcare delivery -- patient satisfaction, care quality and staff morale, according to the results of a new survey of Chief Nursing Officers (CNOs).
The survey, Worsening Shortages and Growing Consequences: CNO Survey on Nurse Supply and Demand, measured the views of CNOs and other nurse leaders on the magnitude and impact of nursing shortages that have plagued the healthcare industry over the last several years.
Nurse leaders are increasingly concerned about worsening nurse shortages and their impact on patient and staff satisfaction, as well as nurse recruitment. This survey also suggests that finding effective solutions to this situation may be beyond the capabilities of most healthcare organizations. They are going to need help, especially as nurse shortages get worse.
The online survey was administered in July 2017 to 11,639 nurse executives with a 2% response rate and was conducted by AMN Healthcare and The Center for the Advancement of Healthcare Professionals in collaboration with B.E. Smith, a healthcare executive search firm and AMN company.
Major Recruitment Challenges
Nearly all CNO respondents acknowledged that their healthcare organizations are currently experiencing some level of nurse shortages, with 72% describing the shortages as moderate, significant, or severe. Only 7% said there is no shortage.
In addition, most felt that the shortages would get worse over the next five years. Specifically, 28% of CNOs predicted a worsening in one year, 43% in two years, and 61% in five years.
Survey respondents also said that nursing recruitment has become very challenging. More than 80% of CNOs described difficulty in nurse recruitment at their organization as moderate, significant, or severe, with 41% describing it as significant or severe.
Patient Care Concerns
More than one-third (34%) of CNOs surveyed said the nurse shortage has a considerable or great negative impact on patient care. The numbers go even higher when CNOs were asked about patient satisfaction, with 41% viewing shortages as considerably or greatly detrimental to how patients feel about their care.
Some of the highest levels of concern appeared when CNOs were asked how shortages might affect nurse morale. The majority, 61%, said that it has a considerable or great negative impact on nurse morale. Nurse morale has been linked to quality of patient care and patient satisfaction.
In discussing their nurse recruitment problems, CNOs said the two greatest challenges are the lack of access to high-quality talent (32%) and the location of their organization (37%), both of which are serious difficulties to overcome.
Healthcare organizations may not be equipped to deal with the magnitude of the shortages, because their human resources expenditures are generally minimal. HR expenditures usually tally approximately 1% of operating budgets, and recruitment is only a fraction of that amount. Outside healthcare workforce solutions experts may be needed to address nurse shortages and the many challenges they are creating for healthcare organizations.
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