Oped: Amid Transformation in healthcare system, nurses sustain to be a constant

It has been said that the mere constant in life is change. The similar can be said for healthcare system.

During the combined 74 years working in this field, medical advances have revolutionized healthcare system, permitting to provide patients with an unparalleled level of care. At the similar time, these changes have presented new challenges.

Regardless of what happens with our healthcare system of our nation, one thing has not changed — the steadfast support provided by nurses. Nurses remain on the front lines of providing patient care, and they are driven largely by the desire to help others.

In accordance to the American Nurses Association, nurses make up the greatest clinical subgroup in hospitals, with more than 200,000 nurses in Texas alone. Registered nurses and advanced practice registered nurses represent about 31% of total hospital employment, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects hospitals will sustain to be the primary employer of registered and advanced practice registered nurses.

As such, nurses possibly have the chance to make the greatest impact on healthcare in our country. They play an important role in improving patient outcomes, increasing access to care, coordinating care and decreasing healthcare costs.

While nurses sustain to be the first and most frequent healthcare experts encountered by sufferers, the nursing profession has evolved over time to meet the current healthcare system needs of nation.

Once in the shadow of physicians, nurses now work collaboratively with physicians — and independent of, not secondary to, other healthcare disciplines. Today’s nurses are capable of delivering an increasing array of services, involving primary and preventive care by advanced nurse practitioners.

Furthermore, nurses can specialize in a variety of areas, from the administration of anesthesia to nursing informatics — a specialty that merges nursing with information management and analytical sciences to make better the care.

In the year of 2010, the Institute of Medicine published suggestions targeted at the future of nursing and its pivotal role in supporting our country’s growing healthcare requirements. The suggestions encouraged more nurses to pursue advanced educational degrees to make better patient outcomes. As a result, several hospitals invest significant resources in nurses — and in the future of healthcare — through training and tuition reimbursement programs.

With more than 500,000 seasoned registered nurses expected to retire by the year of 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the requirement to cultivate 1.1 million new registered nurses.

While the nursing profession sustains to evolve, the public’s trust in nursing has not faded. In fact, in Gallup’s yearly poll of the most trustworthy professions, nurses have topped the list for the past fifteen consecutive years.

Every year, the nation idemtifies nurses for their contributions to the betterment of healthcare during National Nurses Week (May 6-12), which coincides with the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. However the definition of “modern” nursing continues to change, a nurse’s role is constant.