Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

As a master’s level health care practitioner, you may sometimes be tasked with the need to complete a systematic evaluation as a way of improving your organization’s outcomes. In this week’s assignment, you will have a chance to practice these skills by completing a systematic evaluation of a unit, facility, or organization that you are familiar with in an attempt to identify the need to address the economic health care issue that you presented in your Week 3 assignment. This systematic evaluation is often referred to as a needs analysis. Understanding how to do a needs analysis will be key as you advance through your career in the health care environment. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

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Introduction

The financial problem of insufficient nurse staffing has become a major worry for healthcare businesses in the quickly changing healthcare landscape. This problem has far-reaching effects that go beyond money; it also has an impact on nurse satisfaction, patient outcomes, and community well-being in general. The purpose of this study is to perform a thorough requirements analysis by exploring the various effects of insufficient nurse staffing on a healthcare organization. With an emphasis on economic factors specifically, the analysis will comprise a thorough synopsis of the economic problem, the identification of disparities, an examination of evidence-based conclusions, and the proposal of change or implementation strategies. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Summary of Inadequate Nurse Staffing

A critical financial problem, inadequate nurse staffing is closely related to the nationwide nursing shortage that healthcare companies are confronting. The retirement of many experienced nurses is approaching, which will make the shortfall much worse and make it more difficult to find and hire nursing staff (Brooks Carthon et al., 2020). Based on projections, the shortage is expected to worsen by 2030 and reach a tipping point when a million or so nurses will retire, creating a significant gap in the nursing workforce.

There are numerous financial repercussions from understaffing nursing departments. Healthcare organizations are having difficulty finding qualified candidates for available nursing positions as they struggle to close the growing gap. Nurses’ compensation, sign-on incentives, and hourly pay rates have increased as a result of this competitive recruitment climate, especially during times of high demand like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (Han et al., 2021). These budgetary constraints make it more difficult for healthcare organizations to achieve the Triple Aim objectives, which include raising patient satisfaction, improving patient outcomes, and lowering the total cost of healthcare delivery. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Rationale for Addressing the Issue

The justification for tackling insufficient nurse staffing is its significant influence on hospitals’ financial stability and capacity to achieve quality enhancement objectives. Healthcare companies are facing a difficult situation as they try to keep up with the growing demand for nurses. Thus, in order to recruit and retain nurses, it is necessary to provide competitive wage packages, which raises operating expenses. The organizations’ inability to fulfill the Triple Aim goals and adapt to patients’ changing requirements is hampered by this financial strain, which emphasizes how urgent it is to address this economic problem.

Impact on the Healthcare Organization

In the context of our hospital, low nurse staffing has had noticeable and negative consequences on the nurse-to-patient ratios.Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper  Since most nurses see a large number of patients during their shifts, chronic stress brought on by patient overload is a major cause of burnout in the nursing profession. This disparity in workload makes it difficult for nurses to meet all of the demands and preferences of their patients, which ultimately has a negative impact on patient outcomes (Farid et al., 2020).

The organization’s financial constraints are made worse by the desire for greater compensation, which affects nurse-to-patient ratios and, in turn, patient satisfaction levels overall. The financial ramifications of insufficient nurse staffing are apparent in elevated hospital stays, elevated readmission rates, and difficulties fulfilling payment obligations. This combination of variables puts the organization’s financial viability and standard of care at risk, posing a complicated web of issues for healthcare administrators. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Identification of Disparities

The socioeconomic and diversity disparities that exist must be taken into account when examining the effects of low nurse staffing, especially as they relate to particular groups or populations. The burden of the nursing shortage on resources may make it more difficult for vulnerable populations to receive high-quality healthcare. The prevalence of these discrepancies can be better understood by looking at public health data and aggregated organizational data, which highlights the need for focused actions.

The data demonstrating these differences emphasizes how urgent it is to address insufficient nurse staffing from an egalitarian perspective. These discrepancies highlight the wider societal ramifications of a healthcare system that struggles to deliver appropriate and equitable care, in addition to being harmful to the impacted communities. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Evidence-Based Findings

A comprehensive needs analysis necessitates a detailed investigation of evidence-based conclusions to support the pressing need to remedy insufficient nurse staffing. Studies have continuously shown a high degree of association between low staffing levels and poor patient outcomes. Research has shown that acute care hospitals with insufficient nurse staffing are seeing an increase in errors in medication, falls of patients, mortality in the hospitals, and infections that are acquired in hospitals (Griffiths et al., 2020).

An increasing body of research supports the theory that understaffed healthcare organizations are unable to provide the best possible care for their patients because they have insufficient time for patient surveillance.  Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper The body of research emphasizes how crucial it is to keep nurse staffing numbers appropriate in order to protect patients, lower mistakes, and enhance the standard of care provided. For example, patient falls and other avoidable occurrences are directly correlated with nurse staffing levels, highlighting the vital role that nursing personnel play in preserving a safe healthcare environment.

Proposed Change or Implementation Plans

Comprehensive change initiatives or implementation strategies targeted at luring and keeping nursing professionals are required to address the financial problem of insufficient nurse staffing. To increase the attraction of the nursing profession, the proposed plans should take into account competitive wage packages, enhanced benefits, and possibilities for professional development. Increased staffing is one tactic that evidence-based sources frequently suggest using to cut down on errors, lessen burnout, and eventually enhance patient safety and satisfaction. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Frontline personnel, human resources, and healthcare administrators must work together to implement these plans. The complex nature of the problem necessitates a comprehensive strategy that takes into account not only financial factors but also the general working environment and job satisfaction of nursing professionals. Organizations may establish a positive feedback loop that boosts productivity, lowers turnover, and improves patient outcomes by investing in the well-being of their nursing staff.

Predicted Outcomes and Opportunities for Growth

It is anticipated that the suggested modifications or execution strategies will result in favorable consequences and prospects for expansion, concerning the financial aspect as well as the general efficiency of healthcare provision. Improving patient safety, lowering unfavorable outcomes, and raising the standard of care overall are all expected benefits of addressing the shortage of nurses. Economically speaking, there could be savings from lower turnover rates, lower overtime compensation, and higher reimbursement rates as a result of better patient outcomes. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

Enhancing corporate reputation, promoting a happy work environment, and optimizing resource allocation are some of the ways that investing in proper nurse staffing can lead to growth prospects. Increased nurse employment levels are likely to have ramifications beyond short-term budgetary concerns, strengthening the healthcare organization’s long-term viability and competitiveness.

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Conclusion

In summary, this extensive requirement analysis offers a thorough examination of the financial problem associated with understaffing hospitals with nurses. The paper emphasizes the importance of addressing the nursing shortage for the benefit of healthcare organizations and the communities they serve by exploring the complex effects of this issue, spotting disparities, looking at evidence-based findings, and suggesting changes or implementation strategies. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

The anticipated results and expansion prospects highlight the financial factors that justify making sufficient nurse staffing an organizational strategy priority for healthcare institutions. Healthcare administrators can create focused strategies to address the underlying causes of insufficient nurse staffing by acknowledging the connections between financial stability, patient outcomes, and nurse satisfaction. This will help to create a healthcare environment that places equal emphasis on financial viability. Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper

References

Brooks Carthon, J. M., Hatfield, L., Brom, H., Houton, M., Kelly-Hellyer, E., Schlak, A., & Aiken, L. H. (2020). System-Level Improvements in Work Environments Lead to Lower Nurse Burnout and Higher Patient Satisfaction. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 36(1), 7–13. https://doi.org/10.1097/ncq.0000000000000475

Farid, M., Purdy, N., & Neumann, W. P. (2020). Using system dynamics modelling to show the effect of nurse workload on nurses’ health and quality of care. Ergonomics, 63(8), 952-964. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00140139.2019.1690674?casa_token=tAilXSbZk7wAAAAA:YUYLCfxMIQl_XZslk5fUG2zDjoh08Namov7gegN8mTm0bh89j_xGstQF4WYboyTiayt3NmwiRMsVDzv4

Griffiths, P., Saville, C., Ball, J., Jones, J., Pattison, N., & Monks, T. (2020). Nursing workload, Nurse Staffing Methodologies & Tools: a systematic scoping review & discussion. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 103(1), 103487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2019.103487

Han, X., Pittman, P., & Barnow, B. (2021). Alternative Approaches to Ensuring Adequate Nurse Staffing. Medical Care, 59(Suppl 5), S463–S470.  Optimizing Healthcare Excellence Assignment Paper