Population Growth and Hospitals, Finding Help

Hospitals continue to cope despite arguments of severe nursing shortages. Take the state of Iowa for example, where officials say that current nurse staffing runs 8% below the desired level and could reach 27% within ten years. Nationwide, the country could run a deficit of 340,000 nurses by 2020.

Although slowing, United States population growth should reach nearly 400 million by 2050. All the baby boomers should be retired by then, too. We see the need for nurses.

FastCompany has a blog called The Big Idea (which more or less is a thought of the day) and one day last week it was this, inspired by the California Department of Finance: “You can build all the walls you want, but this country is going to have a Hispanic majority by 2050. ”

I haven’t seen nurse shortage predictions that extend to 2050, hopefully we have some game-changing innovations in nursing care by that time to quell the need. But, right now, the responsibility falls to hospitals to reach out to these new Americans and encourage them to pursue a career in health care, especially nursing.

We are going to need the help. Here’s a story of something like this already happening. But the idea needs to spread beyond traditionally Hispanic (Texas, California, etc.) states.  We’re going to experience the shortage everywhere and this new population can provide the help in every corner of the country.