As many are aware, the healthcare industry is currently experiencing a shortage of available nurses that is only expected to increase over the next few years. What is causing this shortage, and what does it mean for travel nurses? Here are a few of the factors:
An aging population in need of care
Once United States citizens achieve the age of 65, they qualify for coverage under Medicare. Since two to three million members of the Baby Boomer generation are reaching 65 annually, the total number of people who are eligible for and require geriatric care is increasing. By 2030, there will be an estimated 85 million United States residents who are over the age of 65; that’s a proportion of 1 in 5 Americans. Ultimately, the number of people who will be seeking treatment will have grown dramatically, strengthening the demand for more healthcare workers and especially nurses.
Nurse burnout and retirement
Among the myriad alarming repercussions of the pandemic is nurse burnout. During the COVID-19 crisis, nurses across the country were forced to adapt to dramatic increases in work hours and patient-to-nurse ratios while witnessing firsthand the effects of an incurable virus on their patients and worrying about the safety of their own family or loved ones. It’s no surprise that these conditions took a toll on the mental health of the nation’s nurses. A survey by the American Association of International Healthcare Recruitment found that 36% of nurses surveyed had seriously considered leaving their job for another career and over three-fourths of respondents reported extreme stress or anxiety as a result of their job. Nurse burnout as a result of COVID-19 is causing some nurses to change career paths or retire early. The number of nurses in the workforce is further declining as a result of natural retirement. In 2015, over 40% of registered nurses were over the age of 50, and by 2022, more than 500,000 are expected to retire.
Small nursing school class size
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates a need for 1.1 million new RNs to alleviate the strain of the nursing shortage. Naturally, many are looking to nursing schools to train the nurses that will be necessary to fill these job openings. However, nursing schools are struggling to accommodate the numbers necessary. In 2016, more than 64,000 applicants were rejected on the grounds that nursing schools simply do not have the sufficient facility size or faculty number to train larger class sizes. Virtual schooling imposed as a result of the pandemic has further exacerbated this issue by preventing students from gaining the hands-on experience that they need in order to become good nurses or even delaying their graduation by a number of years.
What does this mean for travel nursing?
In the landscape of the nursing shortage, travel nurses are set to become an essential- and expensive- method of alleviating staffing strain. Since travel nurses are so well-equipped to moving around the country as their needs call for it, they are naturally suited to relocating to areas currently experiencing staff shortages. Hospitals are competing for hires by offering higher salaries and sign-on bonuses. While this does not change the fact that the nursing
industry desperately needs an influx of new nurses, it is important to note the central role that travel nurses will play in diminishing the burden of the nursing shortage. Already essential workers, travel nurses will become one of the most critical components of battling the nursing shortage. Compare opportunities and benefits here on Wanderly.