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The American healthcare workforce has faced ongoing shortages. Individuals and families face longer wait times, greater difficulty accessing providers, shortened time with providers, some frustration with care delivery, and increased ED visits and hospital readmissions.
The nursing shortage has been an ongoing concern. A number of factors have been cited to influence the shortage; such as lack of job satisfaction; stress, turnover, increase in the number of baby boomers and their healthcare needs, insufficient number of faculty and nurses entering the profession. Although there are many proposed solutions, reliable data and trends point to an unendurable shortage. An inadequate nursing force has negative impact on patient outcomes. With decrease in length of hospital stay and more acute care in the ambulatory and home settings, there is increased need for experienced, highly skilled nurses.
Nurses aren’t the only medical professionals facing concerns of a shortage. There are reports of a shrinking supply of physicians; particularly primary care physicians. Population growth and the aging population is driving the impending physician shortage as well as trends in medical school enrollment and specialization. The aging patient population requires more medical services than the general population and their disease management may end up in an emergency department. The shortages affects health care on many levels; particularly health care access, quality and cost. Increased use of emergency rooms, delayed treatment and greater travel distances are all expected to rise. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) predicts that a shortage of physicians in the U.S. is going to grow.
Solving the impact of the shortage of physicians in primary care on health outcomes, will require a wide-ranging approach; including the increased use of technology and more efficient teamwork among health professionals. Care coordination provides a great framework for the integrated team based approach. The Agency of Healthcare Research and Quality promotes care coordination as a key strategy that has the potential to improve the effectiveness, safety, and efficiency of the health care system; improving outcomes for everyone: patients, providers, and payers. A clinical care coordinator can assist patients who are unclear about what to do in a post -acute care setting; with medication reconciliation, reconnecting them with a primary care physician who has a more of a comprehensive profile, and ameliorating situations that could escalate into a hospital readmission or poorer health outcomes. Effective communication among providers reduces costs and ensures better outcomes for everyone. Investing in care coordination resources is investing in better outcomes.
