Issue selected is nurses’ shortages
With the demographic of the patient population getting older, there is an increasing need for
nurses throughout all health care facilities. Additionally, with the implementation of the
Affordable Care Act, many new patients are seeking health care. Despite the need for nurses
having increased, there continues to be a nursing shortage and a decline in nurse retention rates
throughout the United States. This paper will discuss the effective approaches in leadership and
management related to nursing shortages and turnover rates.
According to the article, The Relationship Between Effective Nurse Managers and
Nursing Retention, one of most critical issues that health care is facing today is nursing shortages
(Force, 2005). By the year 2020, the estimated shortage of nurses would be increased to 340,000
positions. The acuity needed for the hospitals today require hospitals to have dependable nurses
that are highly trained in their respective nursing fields. By there being a shortage of nurses, the
hospitals do not have the necessary amount of nurses to meet the medical demands of all the
patients. Also, the high turnover rates make it hard to ensure all the nurses are properly trained.
Due to both the shortage and the high turnover rates, younger, inexperienced nurses are forced to
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EFFECTIVE APPROACHES IN LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
take on senor nursing responsibilities earlier than normal. This eventual causes nurses to burnout
and add to the increasing turnover rate.
Some of the reasons for the high turnover rates and nursing shortages are the aging nurse
population, decreased rates of nursing school enrollments, increased workloads, poor nurse
staffing ratios and increased acuity of patients. According to Retention reflects leadership styles,
nurses do not leave their jobs because of the hospital but leave because of the managers (Ribelin,
2003). Poor nursing leadership and management decreases chances of career development,
decreases teamwork, and increases poor communication. All these factors also contribute to
reasons for the high nursing turnover rates.
In regards to nursing shortages and turnover rates, nursing managers and nursing leaders
have different approaches. The difference between the approaches is caused by the different roles
that these positions have. According to the textbook, Leadership and Nursing Care Management,
the nurse manager role is given power by the organization to manage the staff in order to achieve
the organization’s goals (Huber, 2014). The nursing managers are focused on short-term goals,
completing objectives, time management, and productivity management. Their objectives are
aligned with the organization’s missions, goals, and policies. Nurse managers put importance in
being efficient, meeting deadlines, managing budgets, and providing a stable work environment
for the staff. As the nurse manager would put more value in the efficiency of a nurse’s work
above everything else, the nurse manager could only view the nurse as a number on the floor’s
statistics. By being present and attentive to the nurses needs, nurse managers can help reduce the
turnover rates.
Nurse managers can address the nursing staff’s needs by assisting with flexible
scheduling, staffing the adequate amount of nurses, and supplying the unit with the necessary
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EFFECTIVE APPROACHES IN LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
equipment. They can go an extra step by assisting the nursing staff further their education and
careers through educational reimbursements and incentives. By ensuring the nursing staff’s
personal and professional needs are met, the nurse managers can retain their staff better and have
higher staff satisfaction scores. While the nurse managers can directly address the turnover rates,
the nursing shortage is a harder issue to tackle. Due to a shortage in nurses, the nurse manager
cannot hire nurses that do not exist. The federal government needs to increase educational
funding for nursing programs in order to support the dwindling nursing population. These
additional funding will lead to more programs and more seats opening up in colleges all across
the country.
On the other hand, the nursing leadership role approaches nursing turnover rates and
shortages on more of a personal level and less of a systematic level. Nursing leaders lead by
influencing staff through effective communication, building trust and teamwork among the staff,
and representing the organization’s visions through the nurse manager&rs