Professional nurses shortages in developing world
International Nurses Day, May 12, the world is going to celebrate the anniversary of Florence Nightingales birth day with a Them Nurses: A Force for change: Improving Health Systems Resilience. International Council of Nurses established the day in 1974 to be celebrated every year to highlight the importance of nurses role in providing the best health care services.
Nursing has been a profession with high standards and a strong sense of public service for over 150 years. Nurses are amongst the most respected of all of our professions. Nursing is the art of caring sick and well individual. It refers to the dynamic skills and methods in assisting sick and well individual in their recovery and in the promotion and maintenance of health.
Nurses join the profession for a reason. Its who they are. They are the healers, the helpers, the caregivers of the world. Nurses have deep practical knowledge of delivering best health care services. International Council of Nurses celebrates this event aiming to increase the public awareness about the nursing and nurses contribution towards the health care innovation. Nurses are the fast and first point of contacting for health services.
In most countries of the world there is a shortage of nurses but nowhere is it as acute as in the developing world. There are not enough nurses. The developed world fills its vacancies by enticing nurses from other countries, while developing countries are unable to compete with better pay.
In countries with widespread nurse shortages, the public health system does not have the capacity to contain a vector-borne illness or to control the spread of contagious diseases. Due to the shortages of Nurses in health care setting the challenges the Nation and the particular patient and clients they are suffering a lot like: Treatments cannot be monitored, waiting times for any treatment are prolonged, patient education is not delivered in proper way, and patients wait in crowded rooms or sleep on floors due to lack of service and care provider.
The main reason for nurses shortages in developing countries are:
1. Lack of quality production and government requirement system.
2. The international migration of nurses in response to push and pull factors. The push factors are rooted in the economic conditions.
Due to poor work conditions, inadequate resources in the health setting, the aging nursing workforce, expanded career options for women, nursings predominantly female nature, the increasing complexity of health care are contributing factors for nurses shortages. Nursing often has a difficult relationship with society due to its social status and lack of professional identity.
Thats why Compounding the situation is that there is a severe worldwide shortage of nurses and midwives in countries where the status of nurses is low and the burden of disease is growing daily (WHO, 2006). Also due to poor incentive structures and inadequate career support.
The international migration of nurses: Nurses in developing countries want to provide safe, effective, evidence-based health care and, because of various overseas aid schemes which have influenced their nursing education system, understand what the gold standard for nursing care should be. Unfortunately, they find it impossible to implement procedures which they know to be safest and best.
Nurses giving i.v. injections can correctly describe the standard precautions, but still give i.v. injections into drip tubing using the same needle and syringe for each patient. They explain how they take care that the needle is not contaminated by blood, but know that if they do not administer the drug that way then patients will miss out. Drugs (and supplies) are shared between patients as families have to pay for everything that is used in the hospital. By sharing drug vials and needles and syringes, nurses can ensure that no drug is wasted and patients whose families may not be able to pay for the drugs can be treated by using vials paid for by others, but which are not fully emptied by single use.
Nursing has passed many phases but the inner spirit of nursing is the same-care of people. To be successful in nursing, nurses must enjoy their work. Nursing is a service which can be practiced with personal satisfaction, and earn a living at the same time.
How to solve the problem?
Due to lack of reorganization, lack of good payment, due to lack of decision making power of nurses and also not receive support for career development they are losing their job and those are currently working are also losing their satisfaction towards their current work. In which the effectiveness of the work will also be less. So to make the solution of shortage of Nurses, Government should take appropriate steps towards increasing the number for requirement. They should increase the incentives; increase the payment scale of nurses. There should be more opportunities for the nurses. The requirement system should be in regular basic.
The education system should be improved. There should be opportunities for nurses for higher education with good facilities.
Gender discrimination should be avoided because a large majority of nurses are female and females are not valued highly compared to males and the work environment for nurses should be good and safe.
Meena Gyawali
Head of Nursing Department
A K Khan healthcare Trust
Dhaka, Bangladesh
