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Synthesis of Evidence Substantiating a Practice Gap

Nursing shortages are significant practice gaps in health settings, including Lima Memorial Hospital (LMH), which compromise patient safety. Identifying and addressing practice gaps is crucial for developing targeted quality improvement initiatives. The assessment focuses on the critical review of practice gaps related to nursing shortage. Assessment intends to provide comprehension and interventions by combining recent studies. 

Identified Scholarly Articles

Recent research has exhibited diverse facets of the practice gap related to nursing shortage, substantiating the need for targeted interventions with a selection of five research articles. Tamata and Mohammadnezhad (2023), conducted research exhibiting a significant association between inadequate planning, policy, nurses’ training, poor workplace environment, and nurses’ high turnover. The meta-analysis by authors of articles over 10 years highlighted a significant increase in nurse shortage due to barriers; 10.4% of articles showed that an absence of training for fresh nursing recruits significantly contributes to the nursing shortage. Following this, Peutere et al. (2024), investigated the issues and challenges associated with constrained nursing staff, revealing patients’ danger of mortality and outcomes in hospitals.

The longitudinal register-based research indicated disturbing patterns, with a 20% rise in inadequate nurse staffing linked to a 1.05-fold higher risk of patient death. Suprapto et al. (2023), performed a quantitative study using an analytical observational strategy, underlining the importance of staff development training in boosting nurses’ job satisfaction. The statistical test synthesis showed an association between training and reduced nurse shortage, with nurses being 1.790 times more satisfied, enhancing care quality. Training improved the nurses satisfaction and improving their skills to offer efficient care.

NURS FPX 8045 Assessment 5 Nursing Project Proposal & Communication Assessment

Nursing shortages and excessive nurse workloads are related to decreased patient safety and higher medical expenses. An observational study indicated a 16% rise in fatality among patients with rising nurses’ job stress, emphasizing the necessity of optimal patient-to-nurse ratios. Lasater et al. (2021), investigated the influence of nurses’ hard workloads caused by understaffing on patient safety, emphasizing the danger associated with an inadequate patient-to-nurse ratio and the necessity for a nursing staffing policy.

Wei et al. (2023), explored nurses’ commitment to work to investigate connections, job fulfillment, and care quality, emphasizing the nursing shortage issue. Through quantitative analysis, they discovered elements impacting nurses’ job fulfillment and intention to leave, with 59.4% reporting significant job satisfaction, leading to nurse retention. The research offers evidence to substantiate the practice gap of the nursing shortage, underlining the necessity for tailored approaches to boost patient outcomes and quality care provision.

Critical Review of Selected Research Articles

The gap due to vacant positions of nurses to fulfill the needs of patients and the challenges contributing to the understaffing issue have drawn attention to current literature. Tamata and Mohammadnezhad (2023), conducted a meta-analysis and systematic review to examine the factors influencing the nursing staff deficit and its effect on nurses, falling under category one of the Johns Hopkins framework. Through the formation of accessible evidence, covering retrospective cohort studies and observational studies, the researchers discovered that poor policy or planning causes and a lack of nurse training correlate significantly with an increase in nurse exhaustion and turnover. The rigorous method of data analysis strengthens its validity and reliability, offering strong evidence for the optimization of variables causing nurse turnover and understaffing to improve efficient medical provision.

The concern of nurse shortage and insufficient nursing job expertise or experience, which affects the risk of mortality in hospital patients, is a significant research question. The researchers present a complete analysis of the research using a longitudinal register-based study, examining the evidence for the association between nursing shortage and poor patient outcomes, including mortality. Peutere et al. (2024), critically evaluated existing studies utilizing the Johns Hopkins technique, which falls into category three. Using mixed-effects survival models researchers investigate the