How lack of clinical sites and preceptors will impact the staffing crisis
As the nation continues to grapple with critical nursing shortages, educational institutions cannot scale up staff to accommodate the influx of students seeking a nursing degree. The lack of clinical sites and preceptors further complicates an already dynamic and severe issue in the healthcare industry.
Nursing schools have struggled for more than a decade to increase enrollment largely related to insufficient faculty and clinical placement opportunities for their students. The Covid-19 Pandemic dramatically increased the demand for nurses, yet it further limited access to clinical sites. These issues combine to fuel the continued nursing staffing crisis experienced nationwide.
According to research conducted in 2020 by the AACN (American Nurses Credentialing Center), 368 schools (38.5% of all respondents) reported that 66,274 applications to baccalaureate nursing programs were rejected.
While the applicants were qualified for admission, schools cited reasons why they could not admit the students such as insufficient availability of clinical sites, faculty, and preceptors, budget limitations, and other factors.
Inadequate availability of clinical sites was the reason most commonly reported (254 schools, 69%). And even more concerning is that 150 schools (40%) said that insufficient availability of clinical sites was the most critical factor for not accepting all qualified applicants.
The ongoing problem of turning away qualified BSN applicants is a widespread issue that demands public attention and urgent solutions. Seasoned nurses are leaving the profession in droves, with many unwilling to consider the variety of alternative roles in education as they deal with extreme burnout. Many baby boomers comprise a large volume of the current nursing workforce and have decided to speed up retirement plans.
Nurses everywhere struggle with daily work obligations and are unwilling to take on additional roles. Bedside nurses continue to be overburdened with poor staff ratios and a lack of support staff. Some no longer feel vested in the nursing field related to their extreme burnout.
Many feel keeping up with their workload and patient care would be further hampered and compromised by the additional responsibilities involved with precepting a student. These reasons make them less agreeable to taking on the role of precepting nursing students.
Hands-on learning experienced during on-site clinicals is a crucial part of the development, critical thinking, and success of a nursing student. The denial of this real-world learning of managing complex and critical patient scenarios that new nurses need is extremely alarming. Many organizations are not able to accommodate students post-pandemic in the way that is required to develop these fundamental skills.
This forces many nursing schools to consider alternatives for the students they can enroll in nursing programs. The use of simulation labs to assist with the skills needed to be a successful nurse has gained momentum during the Pandemic. Using simulation as opposed to hands-on learning is very controversial, as many feel direct care is the best way for students to learn these skills and develop critical thinking. However, many schools are left with no other alternative to meet the immediate needs of the students.
As more and more nurses leave the profession for a multitude of reasons, the vast void left in the nursing field becomes greater and greater. Difficulties maintaining and adding to the nursing workforce remain a significant nationwide issue, and the lack of clinical sites and preceptors further compounds this already diverse issue.
Nursing leadership, educational institutions, and national leaders must collaborate to keep nurses engaged in the profession must think of immediate solutions to this complex problem that affects our world's health and well-being.