Nurses in India are overworked and unrecognized. The WHO’s recommendation is three nurses for a population of 1000 people. In India, ratio stands at 1.9 per 1000 people.
As per the WHO, there are approximately 27 million men and women who are making the global nursing and midwifery workforce. Interestingly, this accounts for just 50 per cent of the global health workforce. Nurses play an inevitable role in health promotion, disease prevention and delivering primary and community healthcare.
Studies have shown when hospitals and other healthcare facilities have adequate nurses, it improves patient safety and lowers mortality rate.
Why is nursing not desirable in India?
Healthcare facilities will always need nurses. However, due to existing social stigma around nursing, poor working conditions, inadequate pay, lack of educational opportunities and low nurse leadership, the profession has become undesirable for many. The following are some reasons that contribute to the shortage of nurses.
Poor pay and poor working conditions
The nursing shortage is a complex problem that has more than one cause. One primary cause is no set minimum wage as per their qualifications and poor working conditions. As per studies, specialized nurses in India have difficulty in finding standard jobs that acknowledge their qualifications. Most of them are bound to work within poorly structured roles. They don’t get much attention in terms of pay and recognition.
Have to be job-ready
Many nurses who might get job might not have the necessary qualifications to work in specialized fields. Much like medicine, nursing is also a long learning journey where one can branch off into specialized fields and this might take up to 9 to 10 years to become a well-trained ICU nurse or those working in neuro surgery or cardiology.
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Poor recognition
There are handful of health institutions in India that are accepting the changing roles of nurses and giving them opportunities that sit well with their qualifications. In other places, nurses are still struggling for recognition within and outside the system and to practice autonomy when it comes to make independent decisions.
Overworked
Most nurses in India are overworked because of the defined shortage. The World Health Organisation’s recommendation is three nurses for a population of 1000 people. The current figure in India stands at 1.9 per 1000 people. Most of them are working for exhaustive hours and experience burnouts frequently.
Brain- drain
One prominent reason why there is a shortage of nurses in India is migration of the staff who are getting better opportunities abroad. Most nurses, especially the ones who are specialized are looking for jobs outside the country. As per reports, gulf countries are a prominent attraction for the Indian nursing staff. Reportedly, Kerala produces the maximum number of nursing staff and they are in great demand outside the country.
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