2018 TNA and TSNA Joint Annual Conference

2018 TNA-TSNA JOINT CONFERENCE | ADVOCACY IN ACTION
The Effect of the Nursing Shortage on Patient Outcomes
Christina Shands (Presenter)
Abbey Dew (Co-Presenter)
Problem Addressed:
As of 2016, 8 out of every 10 Americans suffer from one or more chronic health conditions. Nursing is
among the fastest growing occupations in the US, but the country still faces a large shortage of nurses.
Lack of adequate numbers of nursing staff can impact patient well-being. Higher patient mortality and more
medication errors occur because we have less nurses working more hours. Health care employers can help
fix the problem by offering higher wages, more education and training opportunities, and more incentives.
Only a comprehensive strategy consisting of immediate and long-term measures can ensure Americans
do not continue to suffer due to lack of adequate RNs. The shortage of nurses is a very important problem
because the situation is not getting better but it is getting worse. The shortage of nurses is due to many
reasons such as an increased workload, educational obstacles, and workload obstacles. Nurses play
a critically important role in ensuring patient safety by monitoring patients for changes in health and
performing tasks to ensure patients receive high quality care. Without an adequate number of nurses, the
mortality of patients will increase.
Objectives:
Develop knowledge regarding the effects of the nursing shortage on patient outcomes.
Methods/Procedures:
Review of Literature
Findings:
The nursing shortage is a major problem in our healthcare system, and it will continue to worsen unless the
problem is fixed. In this research paper we identified some of the major causes of the nursing shortage.
Some of the problems were pay wages, undesirable hours, burnout, and a shortage of teaching staff in
nursing school.
Recommendations for Practice/Research:
Further research needs to be done in order to figure out what short term and long-term interventions need
to be implemented and how in order to start fixing the nursing shortage. Further research needs to be done
to figure out why it is so difficult to get an adequate amount of faculty at nursing schools, and research also
needs to be done in order to fix some of the undesirable wages of nurses.
The Effects of Exercise in Patients with Symptoms of Alzheimer’s
Hunter Morse (Presenter)
Todd Keim (Co-Presenter)
Problem Addressed:
Alzheimer’s, the most common cause of dementia, is a neurologic degenerative disease that results in
memory loss and other cognitive abilities, leading to a loss of independence. It is a disease that occurs in
various stages and it is often misconstrued that the disease is a normal part of the aging process. More
than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, accounting for the 6th leading cause of death in the
United States. There is currently no treatment for the disease, rather just measures to help maintain mental
functioning as an individual progresses through the different stages. Currently, the most effective way in
dealing with this debilitating disease is taking proper measures in preventing the onset. This critical analysis
of Alzheimer’s provides insight to the effects of exercise on the brain and how exercise is a preventative
measure for degeneration of the structure of the brain.
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