The World Health Organization estimates that by 2035 there will be a 12.9 million healthcare worker deficit—largely comprised of nurses. And while the nursing shortage has been a hot button topic for many years, the impact was felt across the country when the COVID-19 crisis hit in March 2020.
The need for rapid nurse deployment to hot zones across the country was highlighted and taught us that each state can abruptly be faced with a lack of appropriately specialized nursing staff during or in the aftermath of a global pandemic.
By implementing a standardized national license model versus a state license, states can deploy staff without the need for emergency legislation while empowering key stakeholders and frontline practice workers to positively impact the access to care, the care providers, and patient and staff satisfaction and outcomes. It also saves valuable time and produces higher quality healthcare workers.
Additional benefits of a national licensure include:
- Improved speed to fill open positions
- Access to a larger pool of qualified candidates
- Reduced credentialing and compliance roadblocks
- Decreased delivery time/time-to-fill openings (talent can start quicker to fill urgent needs)
- Eliminate the need for governmental intervention and approval in emergent situations
- Less cumbersome for the healthcare talent
While the mass rollout of vaccines is a promising measure to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for a national license model is still prevalent as we face other serious health challenges like natural disasters and social conflict.
To learn more about the benefits of a national nursing license, download the “Building a Culture of Safety: A National License Model” white paper from the National Association of Travel Healthcare Organizations (NATHO), or call us directly at 866-633-3548 to speak to a member of our team. We also invite you to read Amber’s column in MedCity News on “How a national nursing license could improve patient care during a crisis.“