Nursing Shortage in America Essay

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A summary of the issue and the middle-range theory that could be used

There has been a disturbing trend of both surplus and shortage of nurses at different times throughout the healthcare workforce history in the US. There was a nursing shortage in the early parts of 2000s (Snavely, 2016). While there is already a moratorium regarding nursing shortage at the moment, the situation is likely to worsen in future because of a number of factors. The first cause is that since there is a recovery from the 2008/2009 recession in process, there is a likelihood that nurses who picked up their tools and went to work during the recession will revert to their statuses before the recession. It was estimated that 120 000 Registered Nurses will leave the nursing profession by the year 2015 (Auerbach, Buerhaus & Staiger, 2015). Such an eventuality will lead to the nursing situation as was a decade earlier.

There are 3 million nurses in the US. This is the largest part of the workforce in the healthcare sector. Nursing also happens to be one of the occupations that show the fastest growth in the US. Interestingly, even with such admirable growth, the demand for nursing still outshines supply. It is estimated that there will be 1.2 million job vacancies for Registered nurses between 2014 and 2022 (Grant, 2016). It has also been estimated that the shortage of nurses will double any shortage ever experienced since Medicare and Medicaid, by the year 2025(Cox, Willis & Coustasse, 2014).

The current nursing shortage could make use of Jean Watson’s Theory of Human Caring for a solution. The theory could work by handling the patient from a holistic perspective. It implies paying attention to the patient’s wellness of the mind, body and spirit. Such care has the potential to expedite the healing process (Watson & Foster, 2003). According to Watson, the model incorporates both scientific and art based techniques. It is an approach that incorporates useful aspects of art, humanities, spirituality, science and medicine for the mind, spirit and body, to supplement nursing.

Describe a borrowed theory that could be applied to the problem. Is this borrowed theory appropriate to your identified problem?

Maslow’s theory of hierarchical needs is motivational. It is based on a pyramid representation of human needs in which the needs at the base are regarded more urgent than the ones that come on the higher tier. According to Maslow (1943, 1954), some needs overshadow others. The most basic and urgent need is the one for survival, physically. Inevitably, such a need is the one that first motivates human behavior. Once such a need is satisfied, the next one up the pyramid arises and pushes us to act; and so on, until the highest need at the apex of the pyramid is satisfied.

Figure 1. Maslow's Hierarchy of needs (adopted from Maslow, 1954)

Considering the implication of the theory, emphasis by an employee on the needs at the lower level of the pyramid, i.e. physiological needs and security is understandable.

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Someone just starting off in their career will focus more on the adequacy of wages and security nuances such as a safe environment to work from. Everyone wants to earn a handsome salary to cater for personal needs and those of our family (Maslow, 1987). If an employee’s lower level needs are not adequately met, they are likely to decide based on the compensation, stability and safety concerns. An employee will seek to satisfy the needs at the base of the pyramid by whatever means, if such needs are not met by the employer.

A brief history of the borrowed theory's origins

Abraham Maslow is an acclaimed psychologist because of his theory that suggests that human behavior is inspired by urge to satisfy five basic needs. The needs are hierarchical in nature. Maslow states that humans seek to satisfy the needs at the lowest level of the pyramid before they do the same for the ones that com immediately after, and, sequentially, all five in the end (Maslow, 1943; Maslow, 1954).

Maslow, after looking at the work of Erich Fromm, came to believe that the push to self actualization is encoded in the human psyche. That need arises when all the other needs have been fulfilled. The need for creativity and self actualization suffices once the needs for food, security, love and recognition are fulfilled. Maslow successfully combines ideas brought forth by other psychologists before him, including those by BF Skinner and Sigmund Freud. The latter two focused more on the basic human instincts. He also borrowed from work by Jung and Fromm, who pointed out that the need for attention is equally urgent (Maslow, 1987).

The most important contribution by Maslow in psychology is the “hierarchy of needs” theory. As he sought to understand what motivates human behavior and the search for happiness, he came up with a list of basic needs that a human being has to fulfill for their optimum health psychologically. It is through the interviews and research that he conducted that he developed the pyramid of needs.

A discussion of how the borrowed theory has been previously applied

Maslows theory has been used by nurses in their patient care practices. A person’s need must be met at individual level; if they are to be satisfied, and feel attended to. Nurses have used Maslow’s theory of needs to determine plans for care and admitting the existence of concerns from patients (Jackson et al., 2014). Palliative care medicine and standard hospices are examples of nursing institutions that have used Maslow’s theory to enhance patient care. These institutions emphasize the need for managing symptoms of the disease, pain and the disease in a holistic approach.

Nurses working in healthcare institutions should start with identifying the type, intensity and quality of healthcare that a patient needs, and proceed to protect….....

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