Welcome to the ShiftMed blog where we discuss everything nursing, from professional insights to healthcare holidays to helpful hints for working with us.
Nursing may be a profession taken for granted in the U.S. (just like teachers), but the numbers speak differently to their value. As a career, there’s a lot of flexibility, stability, and earning potential working as a nurse.
The first day on a new nursing job is an exciting step into the nursing field, but nurses may also face some anxieties like anyone else entering a new workplace. Whether it's your first nursing job or fifth, starting a new job can be just as overwhelming as it is exciting.
As healthcare continues to experience a labor shortage, wage inflation has become a significant issue. According to Premier Inc., the nurse base pay is up 9% since June 2021 and is likely to continue rising. Travel nursing agencies, which offer temporary nursing staff to fill in gaps in staffing, are expensive and exacerbate wage inflation. In fact, a recent 2022 report examined input from 272 hospitals in 32 states on registered nurse turnover, retention, vacancy rates, recruitment metrics and staffing strategies. The report revealed that for every 20 travel RNs eliminated, a hospital can save $4,203,000 on average. As a result, health systems and post-acute facilities are searching for alternative solutions.
If nurse retention is not a top priority at a healthcare facility, it should be. From 2020 to 2021, the average cost of turnover for one staff RN increased by 15%, bringing the financial implication of healthcare’s labor challenges into view.
Suffice it to say, the term “nurse” has almost become synonymous with “females in healthcare.” In fact, according to the United States Census Bureau, women hold 76% of all healthcare jobs. It should be no surprise that women have driven 80% of the overall growth in the healthcare industry. But have you ever thought to wonder why most nurses are female? During Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating our female nurses, but also examining why women tend to pursue a healthcare-related career, particularly in nursing.
Traveling nurses have been around since the 1980s, historically filling gaps in healthcare staffing for things like maternity leave coverage and other staffing shortages. The idea is simple –nurses who want to earn more and experience different parts of the country sign on with a staffing agency to be a traveling nurse or contract nurse for short-term work at a facility. Contracts typically run from a few weeks to a few months.
The gig economy has been on the rise for the past decade, but its impact on healthcare has been especially notable in recent years. As the demand for healthcare services continues to grow, the gig economy has presented itself as a solution to address healthcare support staffing shortages in the industry. However, healthcare providers need to find the right partner that helps eliminate the risk that comes with leveraging the gig economy.
