Decline in Healthcare Workers in Nursing Homes Student’s Name Institution Affiliation Course number and name Instructor’s Name Due Date Decline in Healthcare Workers in Nursing Homes Data ...

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Decline in Healthcare Workers in Nursing Homes
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Course number and name
Instructor’s Name
Due Date

Decline in Healthcare Workers in Nursing Homes Data Report
Introduction
Healthcare in the aging population faces a critical challenge due to the decline in healthcare workers in nursing homes. This shortage directly impacts the quality of care available to elderly residents with complex medical needs. With fewer staff, caregivers are overworked, leading to increased burnout and errors. The COVID-19 pandemic has made these issues even more apparent, straining an already fragile system. This decline poses a significant risk to the well-being of older people in long-term care.
Background
According to (Carlton, 2023), the healthcare needs of older people are becoming complicated as there is an acute shortage of staff in nursing homes. Since the COVID-19 Pandemic, nursing homes have lost about 250,000 employees, approximately 15% of the workforce. Despite gains across other healthcare sectors, nursing homes continue to struggle, and projections suggest staffing levels will not recover to pre-pandemic numbers until at least 2026. Long-term understaffing has led to multiple adverse impacts: 55% of nursing home providers reported turning away residents because of staffing shortages. Moreover, almost every second nursing home’s beds have been reduced due to the workforce crisis. Not only is bed availability a crisis, but the care quality of the existing residents is also declining. This situation creates alarming situations because they belong to a more vulnerable aging population age group.
In May 2024, skilled nursing facilities witnessed a workforce decline of roughly 0.1%, a trend that halted months of uninterrupted recovery (Marselas, 2024). Even though this decline is relatively insignificant. It was experienced when providers were trying hard to retain workers and prepare for the federal staffing mandates set to be initiated in 2026. Holly Harmon, an American Health Care Association senior vice president, emphasized that the nursing home workforce recovery is "prolonged" compared to other healthcare facilities, which have managed to rebound completely (Marselas, 2024). According to (Marselas, 2024), despite efforts to increase wages, registered nurses (RNs) saw a 7% average raise, licensed practical nurses (LPNs) received an 8.9% increase, and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) received a 9.7% raise. Many facilities still struggle to compete for qualified candidates.
In proposing federal staffing standards, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) aims to address these issues by mandating an RN on duty at all times and at least 55 RN hours for every 100 residents a day (Carlton, 2023). Unfortunately, 68% of nursing homes are not meeting these standards, and it would be necessary to employ more nurse aides and RNs to do so. The defaulting trend of Medicaid funding across the United St