Happy New Year!  As we gear up for 2008, what can we expect to be the important trends in the Nursing industry?  The AMS (Applied Management Systems, Inc.  http://aboutams.com/default.shtml) has recently outlined their top Healthcare predictions for 2010 (not just Nursing), summarized below. 

Many of these trends directly affect our jobs as Nurses, and will start (or continue to!) have impact in 2008.  What do you think?  What else will be important to your job in 2008 or beyond?

1. Focus on Patient Safety.  Hospitals will continue to strive to prevent errors and improve patient safety.  Wireless tools used by employees in all functions throughout the hospital – including RNs - will help deliver information and reduce errors.

2. Electronic medical records will become a reality.  ‘E-records’ will be cost-efficient, will protect patient privacy and help assure quality.

3. Cost containment.  Like most every other industry, the mantra ‘do more with less’ will continue to be a driving force for hospitals.  Rising healthcare costs will force administrators and hospitals to look for new technologies to reduce costs in the long term.

4. Pay for performance.  Hospitals and doctors will be rewarded based on the quality of care they provide, as documented by patients and consumers.  Incentives on quality will be designed to improve quality control.  We’ve seen the beginnings of this already – facilities throughout NJ are measured by a survey called HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Services), which is a standard survey and data collection methodology for measuring patients’ perspectives on hospital care.  RNs – at the front of patient interaction – do and will continue to play a HUGE role in a facility’s ultimate score.

5. Information technology (IT) gets respect.  IT budgets at hospitals will increase, and management of that information throughout all channels and departments will become an integral part of the clinical management process.

6. Consolidation of insurers.  Insurers will continue to consolidate and change the way we buy and select health coverage.

7.  Nurse staffing.  More states will consider similar legislation to California’s Nurse/Patient mandatory staffing ratio.  There will be debate whether such laws are necessary or harmful to patients.  If adopted, it will create more shortages in the Nursing population, and affect shift schedules in all facilities.

8.  Healthcare professional shortage.  This is the one making the headlines that you’ve probably read about many times over.  By 2010, the US will need more than 1 million new nurses.  As a whole, the healthcare industry will put more focus on recruiting new workers into the field.  With demand far outpacing supply, compensation will increase and new strategies will be developed to retain staff.

9.  Baby Boomers.  The aging ‘baby boom’ generation presents a major public policy concern for long-term care due to its size and anticipated use of resources, as well as boomers’ ‘high maintenance’ reputation compared to their predecessors. 

10. The uninsured.  Due to high costs, many working poor and young workers in their 20s will choose to be uninsured, causing a big problem for the entire healthcare system.

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