The nursing occupation
is the fastest growing of all occupations
and half of the nursing workforce are
expected to retire in the next 15 years.
Allied Health professionals are also in
great demand with declining numbers. A
recent study shows the dramatic shortage of
almost 45,000 in allied health professions.
The
problem is a simple case of supply and
demand. The demand for nurses is expected to grow
40% between now and 2020, while the supply
of new nurses will increase by only 6 % over
the same period. The situation is similar
for other allied health occupations. Factors
driving this growth in demand include:
1. An 18%
growth in the population
2. A larger
portion of elderly (Baby Boomers) demanding
more medical
services
3. The
growth of the medical devices field
The
Industry
The travel
nursing field has helped alleviate the
shortages. Travel nursing has been around
for a number of years but as the nursing
shortage has worsened, travel nurse
contracting has boomed. A few of the reasons
are:
- Travel nurses enjoy the opportunity to
travel and earn higher salaries. A
recent survey indicated that 47% of
travel nurses do so because of the
higher pay rates.
- Travel nurses receive medical benefits,
401 (k) benefits, paid travel costs,
housing and food stipends. A recent
survey indicated that 23% of travel
nurses do so because of private housing
and another 13% travel because of the
tremendous health/dental benefits
offered.
- Travel nurses suffer a lower burn out
ratio than other nurses because of the
diversity of locations and assignments.
- The hospitals are attracted to travel
nurses because they fill short term
shortages during peak periods.
- The travel nurses have filled a gap that
allows a hospital to continue to fill
beds.
- Staffing Industry Analysts reported
recently that 15,000 to 20,000 traveling
nurses are used each week in U.S.
hospitals. Nurse to patient ratio
legislation in some states such as
California drive the demand up for
travel nurses.
- Many studies have confirmed that
patients at hospitals with a lower
proportion of registered nurses in their
work force had significantly higher
rates of patient complications when
compared with patients in hospitals that
were better staffed with RNs. Overall,
hospitals with high RN staffing had
lengths of stay that were 3 to 5 %
shorter, and complication rates 2 to 9 %
lower, than hospitals with low RN
staffing.
The
Sagent Healthstaff Solution
Sagent
Healthstaff recognizes this supply and
demand crisis and has taken several
significant steps to posture itself above
the competition in order to capture a larger
share of the travel nurse market. Since the
company was founded in 2001 the priority has
been to establish a solid foundation of Best
Practices in the industry and to build a
staff that will support the emphasis on
quality. |
