Nursing Theory Applied to the Current Nursing Shortage

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Hi,

1. I am working on a project related to a contemporary nursing issue, the nursing shortage, and need to describe the theory related to strategies to help with nursing shortage. Based on the theory, describe the theory-based strategies that you propose to properly address the issue. It is important to describe how certain components of the theory support (or are related to) the strategies you propose. This can be a plan of action or a listing of specific strategies with examples.

Let's look at what has already been proposed first, which often helps to generate ideas about which strategies you would like to include in your final action plan. One theory to consider is the King's system theory.

There has already been numerous state and federal initiatives to address the nurse shortage, which indicate that professional organizations, health care institutions, and other experts have succeeded in alerting policy makers to the problems associated with a shortage of a skilled nursing workforce. In fact, there are predictions of a massive gap between the supply and demand for nurses in the future, and if correct, it is likely that the scope and scale of initiatives?particularly, the level of financial resources from public and private sources?will need to be significantly expanded to reverse current trends (http://www.kaiseredu.org/topics_im.asp?imID=1&parentID=61&id=138).

Research suggests that the current shortage is the product of several trends, which points to the need for a systems approach to an action plan to address the shortage of nurses, which include:

· Steep population growth in several states,
· A diminishing pipeline of new students to nursing,
· A decline in RN earnings relative to other career options,
· An aging nursing workforce,
· Low job satisfaction and poor working conditions that contribute to high workforce attrition rates, and
· Aging populations that will require intense health care services. These issues are occurring just as the majority of nurses are retiring and job opportunities within health care are expanding. http://www.kaiseredu.org/topics_im.asp?imID=1&parentID=61&id=138

Imogene King's Systems Theory

This goal attainment theory is an open systems framework. Human beings are open systems in constant interaction with the environment. The Systems Theory can also be applied to meeting the goal to develop strategies to address the problem of nursing shortage.

Clearly, there is no simple description of the status of the nursing workforce shortage - present and future. This issue is complex and interrelated. Therefore, it is not possible to isolate single factors or solutions. Rather, a systems perspective review gives the greatest depth and understanding of the relationships between multiple variables, and provides a more comprehensive action plan to address these many factors. It is therefore critical to include the ...