Alongside providing care to the patients, nurses also carry out leadership roles in hospitals and other organizations. As the linchpin component of the healthcare industry, nurses provide the patients with a continuum of care, which leads to patient satisfaction and a speedy recovery from illnesses. Thus, nurses keep the healthcare industry afloat.
Although nursing is a rewarding profession, the evolving challenges make this field one of the most demanding professions. Healthcare firms and hospitals increasingly turn to digital tools to manage processes and analyze data to make informed decisions that benefit patients. This profession entails a great deal of commitment and dedication. Nurses need to cater to the patient’s needs and manage a system of care simultaneously. So, nurses need to be equipped with skills and managerial tools to maintain the healthcare systems better. While caring for their patients, the personal and professional needs of nurses may fall by the wayside. Nurses in the healthcare industry face various challenges that disrupt the rhythm of their lives as well. Listed below are a few of the most common issues faced by nurses across the world.
- Supplementary Working Hours
Although nursing is a round-the-clock job, being on a call or overworking can leave the nurses physically and mentally exhausted. This can put the patient’s life in danger and increase the chances of costly medical mistakes. Also, the RNs working all day long can’t advance their higher education in such conditions. Due to busy schedules, nurses now opt for online nurse practitioner programs that allow them to fit their studies around the clinical schedule. Such programs also help them to balance their academic goals and personal and professional responsibilities.
- Shortage Of Staff
Staff shortage has been a consistent problem in many professions but, in nursing, a shortage of staff can lead to life-threatening situations for patients. Lack of staff leads to unmanageable patient load and inconsistency in the nurse-patient ratio. This inconsistency further disrupts the patient care delivery system. When a nurse is forced to do the work of two nurses, the patients suffer. For example, the patients may die, get infections, get injuries, and so on. When there is sufficient staff in a hospital setting, the nurses give undivided attention to patients and advocate effective healthcare plans for patients.
- Workplace Dangers
While working in a healthcare system, nurses are exposed to various contagious infections and become vulnerable to a range of disorders. They are confronted with multiple physical, biological, and chemical hazards and risk factors. This is an inevitable challenge that needs proper management. The workplace safety and healthcare training and implementation and use of such training and available resources play significant roles in preventing minacious outcomes.
- Violence At Workplace
Workplace violence, physical, mental, and emotional, is widespread in the healthcare industry. When nurses are overloaded with work and responsibilities, their mental deteriorates. Workplace violence is primarily verbal abuse, harassment, and hostility which may escalate to physical violence from the patient’s side. Such types of violence lead to harmful effects on the psychological and physical health of nurses. A study shows that verbal abuse and a low level of respect lead to low job satisfaction of nurses.
- Absence Of Synchronization
Lack of teamwork is a rising challenge in the healthcare industry these days. Teamwork and harmonious relationship among staff members are necessary for a peaceful working environment and productive work culture. Nurses also bear the indirect vilification of every unfortunate incident that takes place in the hospital. Although other factors like ineffective medical care or the absence of doctors might be the reason for inadequate care, yet nurses are the easiest targets to be held responsible for everything. This ultimately affects the job satisfaction of nurses.
- Lack Of Acknowledgment
Despite the strenuous work schedules, long working hours, mental and physical workplace violence, and blames for mistakes of other staff members, the strength, efforts, and dedication of nurses are never recognized, acknowledged, or appreciated. When a person, not only nurses, doesn’t receive any praise for their hard work, their self-esteem is deeply affected.
- Reduced Self-Care
All the aforementioned challenges make it hard for nurses to adopt self-care habits. People usually forget the old saying “care for yourself so you can care for others” in their hectic professional lives. Nurses in hospital settings become used to prioritizing the care of others over their own. However, the consequences of this behavior may surface later in the form of burnout and deteriorated health. Caring for others or performing tasks itself becomes a challenge when you are unwell or exhausted.
Challenges in nursing have evolved over time, but the profession itself remains true to those who are determined to work for the welfare of others. Nurses cater to the needs of people of all ages, genders, ethnic groups, and backgrounds. They work diligently to care for the physical and emotional needs of patients and meet their expectations. Challenges in this field are inevitable, so it is essential to be aware of such challenges and their impact to avoid burnout.
