The COVID-19 pandemic has had a signThe COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the healthcare workforce in the United States, with an estimated 1.5 million healthcare jobs lost in the first two months of the pandemic. Although many of these jobs have since returned, healthcare employment remains below pre-pandemic levels, with the number of workers down by 1.1%, or 176,000, compared to February 2020. This comes at a time when the need for healthcare workers has never been greater, with staffing shortages now the nation’s top patient safety concern, according to the ECRI, a nonprofit patient safety organization.
The American Hospital Association has called the workforce shortage a “national emergency,” projecting the overall shortage of nurses to reach 1.1 million by the end of the year. Professionals from medical lab workers to paramedics are also in short supply, and the effects are being felt throughout the entire care continuum. Whole hospitals and medical departments have shuttered in certain parts of the country, leaving patients with less access to vital healthcare, including labor and delivery services and inpatient care for children.
The shortage of healthcare workers is fueling soaring burnout levels, leading to potential medical errors and harm to patients. The number of central line-associated bloodstream infections increased 28% in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, while rates of falls rose by 17% and pressure injuries increased by nearly 42% at skilled nursing facilities during the same period. Low morale has already translated into departures, with 18% of healthcare workers quitting their jobs since February 2020, according to a September 2021 poll of 1,000 healthcare workers.
The strain on healthcare workers has not let up, with a February 2022 survey conducted by USA Today and Ipsos of more than 1,100 healthcare workers finding that nearly a quarter of respondents said they were likely to leave the field in the near future due to the pandemic. This has resulted in sudden, temporary staff losses, with healthcare providers having to temporarily close operations due to staff members contracting COVID-19 and having to isolate.
Patients are feeling the sting of the healthcare worker shortage in several ways, including longer wait times for care and reduced access to vital healthcare services. The healthcare worker shortage is a national emergency that requires immediate attention and action to ensure that patients receive the care they need and deserve.
blogpay
