A pool of retired and non-working emergency nurses may be hired in the event of a disaster

The COVID-19 pandemic fueled the nationwide urgent need for registered nurses. This emphasized the need for a clear staffing plan and an accurate assessment of what the registered nursing workforce would look like.

for that reason, Annual report of emergency medicine Sue Ann Bell, an assistant professor of disaster at the University of Michigan School of Nursing, is trying to estimate the workforce of all registered nurses who are not currently working in the US nursing field and explain work mobility. Of an emergency nurse.

Can you explain your research and important discoveries?

The purpose of this study was to estimate the US registered nurse workforce who are not currently engaged in nursing. In large-scale disasters, hiring from retired or non-working registered nurses is one strategy to address the surge in demand for emergency nurses.

I was also interested in entering and exiting the emergency nursing field from 2016 to 2017. We used an existing data source, the 2018 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses. This study provides estimates for all registered nurses, including nurse practitioners who are not actively working. In nursing, only retired people were visualized on the Coroples map based on demographics, place of residence, and per 1,000 people in the state.

The mobility of the workforce in and out of the emergency nursing specialty from 2016 to 2017 was quantified. There, we found that the potential pool of skilled emergency nurses who could leave their area of ​​expertise and work in other environments was very small (about 5%). For setting the emergency department of surge capacity. These particular findings are important because emergency nursing is a highly skilled discipline and requires lengthy training. Hiring non-working nurses with recent experience as emergency nurses is an approach to addressing the staffing needs of the emergency department.

Of the survey participants, 61% were found to have worked full-time as registered nurses at the end of both 2016 and 2017. At the end of 2017, 17% were not engaged in nursing. The largest percentage of people in the emergency nursing specialty was newly licensed nurses, at 15%.

Our results are with nursing, especially emergency nurses Nurse practitioner, Nationwide under the conditions of large-scale disasters. The results of this study show that leaders in the emergency medical sector are potential productive people in policies, workforce recruitment, workforce geographic migration, training for new graduate nurses, and emergency care for registered nurses. It can be used to inform you of work adaptation strategies to fully utilize your abilities. It’s not working now.

The Michigan results were noteworthy in that the Great Lakes and Maine states had the highest per capita rates of non-nursing, including retirees. Does this make Michigan stand out?

This study distinguishes between Maine and the Great Lakes states, and what we have learned is that registered nurses may have greater reserve capacity to withdraw in future public health emergencies. is. I don’t know why, but I think Michigan is a great place to live and retire in the summer. Like the other Great Lakes regions and Maine, we have many “Snowbird” retirees. This means that Snowbird retirees often leave to spend the winter in warmer states. That may be one of the explanations for the results, but there may be other reasons we haven’t investigated.

Most nurses in Michigan are not currently working as nurses, and many have retired. what is the reason?

We looked at regional differences and let them know what the reserve pool of non-working nurses was. This study does not investigate why nurses are not working. We already know that burnout, unsafe working conditions (often associated with inadequate staffing), and high workload are just a few of the reasons. Investigating the “reasons” behind nurses who are not working in Michigan is another future study.

During the COVID period, nurses were under such pressure. It seems like the best time to ask for help from retired nurses or nurses who aren’t currently working. Why didn’t it happen?

Nursing professionals focus on care, helping patients return to optimal levels of health and addressing those in need. A quick scan of the news headlines about pandemics and vaccination campaigns has resulted in many retired nurses volunteer-based, part-time roles, and even full-time employment.

For example, I was part of Michigan Medicine’s field hospital planning team during the height of Michigan’s first surge. We were overwhelmed by the nurses who volunteered to support this effort. However, I think a clear plan that is driven by policy and can target the unemployed nursing workforce will be an excellent and necessary outcome that can be informed by our research.

Did you get any surprises or challenge the traditional way of thinking about this research?

It was not surprising, as nursing is an aging workforce. However, I was surprised at the large number of nurses who did not work as nurses but were not officially retired.

As nurse For myself, this profession was a very rewarding one, but I think we need to take steps to better protect and support the entire nursing workforce. Just this month, the National Academy of Medicine released a consensus report outlining its vision for the future of nursing. The report specifically highlights the need for a more diverse workforce and one that is ready to respond to public health emergencies.

What is the next step in this series of studies?

Our team currently has another treatise reviewing a national estimate of telemedicine use by registered nurses. This is another potential solution for addressing patient care needs despite a shortage of health care workers due to pandemics and other disasters. Other next steps may include contacting this group of RNs to assess their readiness to return to the RN. Labor force, If the need reoccurs.