New Jersey hospitals are feeling the impact of the nationwide workforce shortage, with an industry survey showing rising staff vacancy rates even as hospitals triple their spending on supplemental staffing from travel and agency nurses.
The New Jersey Hospital Association completed a survey of the state’s hospitals in early February to gauge how the workforce shortage that has struck virtually every employment sector has specifically challenged hospitals. NJHA’s Center for Health Analytics, Research and Transformation analyzed the responses, gathered from 70% of the state’s hospitals. Its report, Healthcare Employers in Dire Need of an Expanded Workforce Pipeline, shows that:
“Hospitals have always faced cyclical staffing shortages, but the disruptive force of COVID-19 has created an unprecedented workforce plight across the entire continuum of care,” said NJHA President and CEO Cathy Bennett. “Providers and policymakers have adopted short-term strategies to get us through the public health emergency, but it will require a coordinated strategic investment to rebuild the pipeline and bring people into these critically important jobs.”
These discussions must include assessing and implementing curriculum changes, opening more education slots for students interested in healthcare, increasing healthcare faculty, recruiting healthcare workers from disadvantaged communities and creating pathways so that healthcare is recognized among diverse groups for its meaningful, stable employment opportunities.
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