Eight years ago, a Georgetown University study revealed that by 2020 the U.S. would need 5.6 million more healthcare workers to meet medical demands. Since then, numerous studies have also accurately indicated that we will experience a shortage of home health aides, personal care aides, nursing assistants, medical and lab technicians and nurse practitioners. One recent study by Mercer in particular cites that by 2025 we will likely face a shortage of 446,300 home health aides.
According to the Mercer report, an older, less active population is driving the need for more home health and personal care aides throughout the country. It’s estimated that this year alone nearly 150 million people will likely to suffer a chronic illness, such as heart disease or diabetes. By 2050, according to Mercer, America’s senior population will increase to 88 million and require even more aides to assist with chronic health conditions and disabilities associated with an older population.
Demand for Health Care Workers in the Spotlight
The recent coronavirus pandemic has further underscored the high demand for healthcare workers and how strained our hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and home care providers are without sufficient, well-trained staff during a time of crisis. Staffing firms have indicated surges in the demand for temporary frontline healthcare workers in the wake of the pandemic. The surge comes as hospitals are dealing with an influx of patients with COVID-19, potentially squeezing an already tight labor supply, according to Healthcare Dive. In addition, as more healthcare workers get exposed to the coronavirus and are forced to stay home on leave, the demand for additional staffing will further spike.
The healthcare field is a challenging and rewarding career with society as a whole reliant on the knowledge, skills, experience, passion and commitment of physicians, nurses, home health care aides, medical technicians and others. We are seeing this each and every day in the face of today’s crisis and the difference health care workers make in people’s lives.
Manchester Specialty Programs specializes in providing agents and brokers with totally integrated business insurance solutions to meet the needs of Home Care, Allied Health and Human/Social Services organizations. For more information about how our products and services can help protect your insureds, please contact us at 855.972.9399.