When it comes to professions that are almost universally loved, nurses have to be pretty close to the top of the list. They are the face and hands of medical institutions when we are at our most vulnerable, and they’re some of the most selfless people you can find. Unfortunately, there just aren’t enough of them around these parts…
Here are Five Fast Facts on the continuing nurse staffing issues in Michigan:
- 😣🔥 Stress And Burnout - It was there before the pandemic, but it’s gotten much worse since then. Now, almost 40% of nurses in the state plan to leave their job within the year. Eighty-four percent of those surveyed report emotional exhaustion, which almost doubles their chances of leaving their job. On top of that, 32% of nurses are age 55 or older, meaning the problem is only going to get worse as those experienced nurses leave the workforce naturally to retire. There are already 8,500 open positions across the state.
- 🩺 Nurses Say - There are over 50,000 registered nurses in the state that simply aren’t working in a nursing job. The overwhelming sentiment from multiple surveys shows staffing levels are their primary concern, and many aren’t willing to go back to work until that has been addressed.
- 🪦 A Real Impact - They have a point! According to a survey earlier this year, 42% of nurses know of a patient death due to unsafe staffing levels. It was only 22% in 2016.
- 📝 Legal Efforts - State lawmakers have tried to pass bills for years requiring sufficient staff ratios and prohibiting mandatory overtime for nurses. So far these bills have all died in committee, but the next round should be picked up for debate in January.
- 🏥 Hospitals Say - Hospitals say that such legislation prevents hospitals from setting the levels that work best for them, and will threaten hospitals overall since they can’t find and maintain a sufficient workforce. They say another 13,000 nurses would be needed, or there could be a loss of almost a quarter of the state’s hospital capacity. They’d rather improve recruitment programs and lower the barriers for bringing in out-of-state nurses.
🔥Bottom line: This problem isn’t unique to Michigan - nationally, about 100k nurses have left their jobs since the pandemic began. Unfortunately, their experience went out the door with them, which may be partly why all those young nurses aren’t sticking with their own careers. Regardless, this is a big, big problem, and it’s getting worse as time goes on. We need real solutions FAST, or our hospital systems will have increasing difficulty providing the care so many people need!
What do you think is the solution?
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