Posted: August 14th, 2022
Challenges Encountered During Nursing Staffing and Promotion
Challenges Encountered During Nursing Staffing and Promotion
Nursing is a vital profession that contributes to the health and well-being of individuals and communities. However, nursing faces many challenges in terms of staffing and promotion, which affect the quality of care and the satisfaction of nurses. Some of the main challenges are:
– Shortage of nurses: According to the World Health Organization, there is a global shortage of 5.9 million nurses and midwives, which is expected to increase to 9 million by 2030 (WHO, 2020). This shortage is caused by factors such as aging population, increased demand for health services, low retention rates, insufficient education and training, migration and attrition of nurses, and inadequate investment in the health workforce (WHO, 2020). The shortage of nurses impacts the workload, stress, burnout, turnover, and patient outcomes of nurses (Aiken et al., 2017).
– Lack of career development opportunities: Nurses often face limited opportunities for career advancement and professional growth, which affect their motivation and performance. Some of the barriers to career development include lack of mentorship and guidance, rigid organizational structures, insufficient recognition and rewards, gender discrimination and stereotypes, and lack of leadership skills and competencies among nurses (Al-Hamdan et al., 2017). These barriers hinder the development of nursing leaders who can influence policy and practice, advocate for the profession, and improve the quality of care.
– Inadequate working conditions: Nurses also encounter challenges related to their working environment, such as low salaries, long hours, heavy workload, violence and harassment, lack of autonomy and empowerment, poor communication and collaboration, insufficient resources and equipment, and unsafe practices (ICN, 2019). These challenges affect the physical, mental, and emotional health of nurses, as well as their job satisfaction and commitment. They also increase the risk of errors, infections, injuries, and deaths among patients and nurses (ICN, 2019).
To address these challenges, various strategies have been proposed and implemented at different levels. Some of the strategies include increasing the supply and retention of nurses through education, recruitment, retention, and migration policies; enhancing the career development opportunities for nurses through mentorship, coaching, training, recognition, rewards, and leadership development programs; improving the working conditions for nurses through salary increases, workload reduction, flexible schedules, violence prevention, autonomy enhancement, teamwork promotion, resource provision, and safety improvement; and strengthening the role and voice of nurses in decision-making processes through advocacy, representation, participation, and empowerment (WHO et al., 2020).
References
Aiken LH et al. (2017) Nursing skill mix in European hospitals: cross-sectional study of the association with mortality,
patient ratings,and quality of care. BMJ Quality & Safety 26(7):559–568.
Al-Hamdan Z et al. (2017) Barriers facing nurses in advancing their career in Saudi Arabia. International Journal
of Nursing Practice 23(6):e12596.
ICN (2019) Nurses: A Voice to Lead – Health for All. International Council of Nurses.
WHO (2020) State of the World’s Nursing Report – 2020. World Health Organization.
WHO et al. (2020) Investing in the Health Workforce: A Sourcebook for Health Employment Transformation.
World Health Organization.
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