The World Needs 6 Million More Nurses
The World Health Organization (WHO) study, State of the World’s Nursing Centre, states that there would be a global deficit of 5.9 million nurses in 2018, a marginal increase from a scarcity of 6.6 million in 2016.
• Marginal and lower-middle-income countries face the most severe shortage of nurses.
• This World Health Day, the WHO is calling for participation in a significant expansion in nursing education.
• The world desperately needs 6 million more nurses to meet world health objectives.
The study was released on World Health Day, an annual event coordinated by the WHO, which this year focuses on helping nurses and midwives, most of whom are on the frontlines of the COVID-19 intervention.
As international health systems implode under the pressure of coronavirus, reports show that there are not enough nurses to meet global health planning objectives – with or without a worldwide pandemic.
The report concludes that the total number of nurse graduates will have to increase by 8 percent per year on average, in addition to improved employability and retention of these graduates, to solve the deficiency in all countries by 2030.
Low and lower-middle-income countries, where an increase in the number of nurses struggles to keep up with population increase, are facing the most budgetary pressures. The study estimates that 5.3 million more nurses are required in these countries to fit their needs. There are 27.9 million nurses worldwide, a growth of 4.7 million between 2013 and 2018. About 80 percent of these nurses are working in countries that make up half of the world’s population. These data reports show the shortages of nurses around the globe.
They are advocating for the development of a minimum of 6 million new nursing jobs by 2030, mainly in low-and middle-income countries, to meet global health goals and objectives. Sustainable Development Goal 3 seeks to ensure safe lives and encourage well-being for all ages, including the introduction of universal health insurance.
“The number of nurses is growing in size and technical reach. Nevertheless, growth is not equal, inadequate to meet increasing demand, and leaves some communities behind, the authors added.
One hundred ninety-one countries gathered data for the study, which was produced in collaboration with the International Council of Nurses as well as the Global Campaign for Nursing Now.
Now, more than anything else, the world desperately nurses them to work to the fullest potential of their experience and knowledge to combat the epidemic. The world comes as a witness to an unprecedented political dedication to universal health care. In every case, nurses deliver critical care and passion for their patients. “At the same time, our emergency preparation and intervention capability are being checked by the ongoing epidemic of COVID-19 and the mass disruption of the population due to conflict,” the report states.
Moreover, laws resolving the gender wage gap will extend to both the public and private sectors and promote flexible and reasonable working hours. However, countries should adopt labor policies that take into account the fact that nursing workers are still overwhelmingly female, argue the authors.
In addition to providing new nursing jobs, the study advises administrations to:
• Strengthen the expertise of nurses to guarantee that nurses play an active role in influencing health policy and policy-making and lead to the sustainability of health and social care systems.
• Participate in the rapid expansion of medical education to meet international demands, new types of interconnected health and social care, and meet domestic demand and adapt to emerging technology in the present.
