Despite efforts to draw more people into nursing programs, the ongoing nursing shortage is only going to get worse, according to an industry expert.
With demand for healthcare services continuing to rise and older nurses leaving the workforce, nurses are seeing their average work week increase, said David Bachman, senior research analyst focusing on healthcare facilities for Longbow Research.
Longbow Research's most recent data reveals that nurses are working approximately 12 to 15 minutes a week longer than average. In 1995, permanent staff nurses were logging 33.5 hours per week, compared to 2007-2008's trend of 36 to 36.5 hours per week.
Hospitals will continue to see an increase in labor hours year over year, Bachman said. From July 2007 to July 2008, labor hours increased 3 percent.
"This is a good sign overall that healthcare continues to be a growing industry," Bachman said. "This is a positive trend for hospitals."
Hospitals are extending work hours for their permanent nursing staff, which is less costly than hiring temporary staffing or increasing temporary staffing hours to cover their needs.
While Longbow Research covers national trends, Bachman said that - generally speaking - demand varies geographically, with the upper northern part of the United States seeing stronger nurse demand than the southern half of the country, with the exception of the Houston area.
With existing nurses staying put and lower patient volume levels, Florida has one of the weakest markets for nurses, he said. California, on the other hand, is seeing demand starting to pick up, thanks to the state's mandated minimum nurse-to-patient ratio.
"Hospitals in California are trying to find the appropriate staffing levels to deal with the new state law," Bachman said.
Robust hospital construction is also impacting nursing staffing. While some new construction is replacing older facilities, Bachman said communities are building additional facilities to meet the needs of, and add services for, the local growing population.
Infection control and customer service are driving the incorporation of single-patient rooms in many of the new hospital constructions, Bachman said.
"From a staffing perspective, this presents some challenges," he noted.
In addition to nursing staffing shortages, questions over whether hospital systems have a strong enough base of well-educated, dedicated personnel to move up the ranks into administrator positions is concerning hospital executives.
"As experienced administrators near retirement age, hospital executives will need to address the skill level of the next tier of leaders," Bachman said.
He added that, over the next five to 10 years, he expects this issue to grow in prominence for hospital executives.