Description
Two papers needed:
Part I. (please follow the numerical guidelines below)
As a healthcare professional, you will be a part of an Interdisciplinary team. That team will communicate together about the patient from different points of view in order to provide the best treatment plan.
You will choose two allied health specialties from either The Association of Schools for Allied Health Professions website or the textbook. Write a paper of 500-750 words addressing the specialties that would interact during a typical workday in a hospital, a long-term care facility, and an outpatient clinic. You will specifically address three out of the following six questions in your paper:
- What is their function?
- How does it affect your specialty?
- How does it affect the patient?
- If a facility did not have a particular specialty, who would be able to take over that function?
- Would you be willing to be cross-trained for the function?
- Is there a written policy for coverage issues?
Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines
Paper #Part II (please follow the numberical guidelines)
There were several different reasons for workforce shortages. You as a healthcare professional, need to identify these reasons for the workforce shortages.
Please list the top three reasons you believe that there is a shortage and write a 1,500-1,750-word essay detailing your reasons. Remember to specifically address the following in your reasoning:
- Consider some short-term solutions.
- Consider some long-term solutions.
- Identify a special interest group or government agency that would help you write policy to solve the problem.
Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines
Explanation & Answer
Attached.
Running Head: HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE SHORTAGE AND POSSIBLE
SOLUTIONS
Healthcare Workforce Shortage and Possible Solutions
Name
Institution Affiliation
28/10/2017
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HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE SHORTAGE AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Introduction
Healthcare sector is a labor-intensive sector that requires a lot of human personnel to
engage in performing many of its functions. Considering this, for the healthcare system to
function, there should be enough healthcare providers available and a proper system that
ensures they are properly motivated to perform their duties. One of the goals of the United
Nations Sustainable Development goal that the United Nations member states agreed on, was
to ensure Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by the year 2030. This UHC included access to
quality basic healthcare services. This goal has become a tall order to achieve for many
countries because of the shortage of the skilled labor in the hospitals. These countries are
unable to create an equal distribution of the healthcare personnel spread out among it
healthcare facilities. According to a report released by WHO in 2013, it revealed that by the
year 2035, the world will have a shortage of approximately 12 million healthcare employees
which will create serious issues for the access to health for the people all over the world
(Orvill & Pascal, 2014)
Causes of healthcare workforce shortage
The aging population has created a shortage in the healthcare sector. "Baby-boomers"
have been the largest population of the healthcare providers, and with the majority of them
turning 65 years, has created a gap in the health sector (Orville & Pascal, 2014). The number
of people who are at the age of 65 years and above is large than it has ever been observed
before. A study conducted by US Bureau of Labor Statistics; it revealed that from the year
2010 to 2030, the USA will experience an increase in the number of its Senior citizens by
75%. By the year 2050, approximately 88 million in America will be 65 years and above.
Due to this aging factor of the larger part of the population, it has increased the healthcare
demand with a majority of them having chronic health issues (Tim et al., 2017). The aging
factor has also caught up with a big chunk of the healthcare providers with the majority of
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HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE SHORTAGE AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
them being above the age of 50 years which means they are expected to retire soon and others
have already reached the retirement age (Grant, 2016). The WHO has determined that
approximately 700,000 registered nurses are expected to retire or voluntarily leave service
due to age by the year 2024. The largest population of the registered female nurses were
recruited into service before the 1970s because of the limitation in the women career choice
during those periods. Due to the nature of the job, many of these health practitioners are
choosing to leave because of exhaustion and tiredness and can no longer keep up with the
operations of the healthcare facilities.
Therefore, the aging factor has been the greatest contributor to the shortage of healthcare
providers in most countries. Those that are left to offer services are not enough to cater for
the rising demand and therefore it has created other problems such the ri...
