The world’s healthcare system is under a serious threat due to acute nursing shortages. The crisis is so severe in fact, that ICN estimates there will be a global shortfall of 13 million nurses by 2030. That is of course, if no action is taken to remedy the situation.

COVID-19 has exacerbated this situation further, causing many nurses to suffer from:

·        Burnout,

·        Exhaustion,

·        Mistreatment and

·        even Death

It is not hard to see why reports of Nursing Unions strikes and exodus of nurses from the workforce have become frequent.

To have a closer look at this global health emergency, let’s understand its deeper impact at the global level.

Impact of Nursing Shortages Around the World

As a country becomes more developed, the average age of the population starts rising. This is because when a society gets better access to quality education and healthcare, birth rates start falling. 

So, less people are born and a decline in the working-age population is seen. Whereas a rise in the older, more dependent population is observed. 

It is a well known fact of life that as a person ages, they become more susceptible to health complications. This leads to a rise in demand for healthcare. However, due to a shrinking working age population that demand is not adequately fulfilled. 

Thus, it is not a surprise that developed economies like the USA and UK are struggling from the nursing shortage crisis a lot.

According to official statistics, as of September 2022:

• around 133,000 vacancies in the UK’s NHS and
•  a vacancy rate of 9.7%.

A pre-pandemic study from the US Department of Health and Human Services projected the registered nurse supply to be at a deficit of 100k after 2020.

Lower-income and developing countries face a different sort of challenge.

They are in danger of losing their domestic nursing workforce to international markets. 

These markets provide: 

• higher pay, 
• better working conditions and 
• wider social safety nets. 

Thus, it is easy to see why nurses from developing countries are tempted to leave their domestic markets in favour of working abroad.

International Nurses Day: Our Nurses. Our Future.

As part of the International Nursing Day celebrations every year, the International Council of Nurses (ICN) publishes groundbreaking findings that address the current challenges faced by the healthcare industry and how to tackle them.

The report, Recover to Rebuild, cites more than 100 studies which show 40% to 80% of nurses reporting having experienced symptoms of psychological distress, nurses’ intention to leave rates having risen to 20% or more and annual hospital turnover rates increasing to 10% and even more.

To address the global nursing shortage and retain the existing workforce, ICN recommends four policy focus areas:

·        Education,

·        Jobs,

·        Leadership

·        and Service Delivery.

These are based on the Global Strategic Directions for Nursing and Midwifery, which is a set of policy priorities that can help countries ensure an adequate supply of nurses.

Jobizo: A Made-in-India Solution for a Global Problem

So, how to forge ahead on the path of overcoming this crisis?

In December 2021, the country’s healthcare situation looked bleak at best and catastrophic at worst. People had suffered from two devastating waves of the Coronavirus. In the capital city, people were dying due to a lack of oxygen cylinders.

Doctors and nurses were overworked, hospitals were understaffed, they had insufficient beds, mortuaries and cremation grounds were full; people were literally cremating the dead bodies of their loved ones in electric furnaces.

But Avishek Aggarwal, a highly respected member of the healthcare industry saw the possibility of a better future. He saw that the market was in a desperate need for a solution to tackle the shortages of medical professionals.

And so, Jobizo was born.

It was not an instant success. People were uncertain about the use of technology and machine learning algorithms to find nurses and medical employers.

However, Jobizo team was not discouraged. They worked hard to convince people of its platform and how revolutionary it was. Slowly, they were able to make significant progress towards filling the gap between supply and demand of healthcare professionals.

Jobizo has been recognized for its potential to solve global challenges faced by the medical industry. In February 2023, it won the Startup of the Year trophy in the Economic Times Human Capital Awards.

The model on which Jobizo works is simple. For healthcare employers, the Jobizo team has created a web app. 

Using the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning, the webapp identifies the right healthcare worker for the organisation according to their qualifications, credentials, work experience and location.

Traditional channels of hiring were time consuming and tedious but with Jobizo, clients get access to a terminal through which they can directly communicate with the candidate: schedule interviews, and track the status of jobs posted and applications received.

On the other hand, medical employees can search for suitable employment options through the mobile app. They are automatically shown employment opportunities available according to their geographical location and area of expertise. 

They can apply from the app itself and schedule interviews. All payments are mediated through the app in a fast and secure manner. 

If you would like to experience the power of the app in transforming the recruitment process, then download it today from App Store/Play Store. For more information, you can also visit this page.