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Article #42: Baby Boomers - A Healthcare Crisis Nears

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Baby boomers are quickly approaching companies. Most nurses did not become
retirement age, and as they do, there are nurses to sit behind a computer and to
a number of concerns that need to be talk on the phone for hours.
addressed, particularly in the area of How This Will Affect Baby Boomers?
healthcare. Unfortunately, there appears Advancements in medical technology and
to be no easy answers to the healthcare science means that people are living
problems that baby boomers, and the longer. This does not always mean that
population in general, will face in the there is a high quality of life for those
very near future. that are living longer though. Many of
Baby Boomers are people who were born these people who would have died from a
between 1946 and 1964. During this period medical condition two decades ago can now
of time the United States of America saw live for a long time to come. These
an explosion in birthrates that had never people often require a great deal of
been seen before and nothing like it has long-term care, whether it is at home or
been seen since. Today, baby boomers make in a long-term care facility.
up approximately 28% of the total United Those receiving long-term care at home
States of America population. require nurses to help them with their
With this group of people occupying such day-to-day tasks. The following is a
a large segment of the population, it is quote taken directly from the Medicare
predicted that there will be a major website (
financial strain on the healthcare "Generally, Medicare doesn't pay for
industry as a whole, as baby boomers long-term care. Medicare pays only for
reach retirement age. There are many medically necessary skilled nursing
reasons why the healthcare industry will facility or home health care. However,
face problems as baby boomers begin to you must meet certain conditions for
retire and begin to need long-term care Medicare to pay for these types of care.
services. Most long-term care is to assist people
Baby Boomers Are The Nurses with support services such as activities
Go to any healthcare facility today and of daily living like dressing, bathing,
look around at the nurses who are working and using the bathroom. Medicare doesn't
there. One thing will become abundantly pay for this type of care called
clear to you; the vast majority of nurses "custodial care". Custodial care
working in healthcare are in fact baby (non-skilled care) is care that helps you
boomers themselves. We have heard for the with activities of daily living. It may
past few years about nursing shortages also include care that most people do for
and predictions that these nursing themselves, for example, diabetes
shortages will only get worse. monitoring."
There are many reasons why the United There is also a great deal of talk about
States of America currently faces nursing whether or not Medicare will even be
shortages. Traditionally, nursing has around in the coming decades. Consider
been a career dominated by women. Women the fact that 28% of the population will
have made great strides in efforts to no longer be contributing to Medicare via
gain equality over the past few decades; taxes, while at the same time that 28%
much of this progress is attributed to will be using more of the resources.
women who are from the baby boomer Is It All Really That Bleak?
generation. With these strides in Yes and no. It is true that there are no
equality, women have realized that they easy solutions in the foreseeable future
have many more career choices other than to help deal with the nursing shortage,
being a nurse, a schoolteacher, or a while the need for nurses will increase
homemaker. Today women are running the dramatically. It is also true that the
largest corporations in America, making economics of supply and demand will
great salaries, and receiving high levels create a situation where healthcare will
of prestige. become even more expensive, while
A Two-Fold Problem healthcare providers continue to raise
As baby boomers retire a two-fold problem salaries in hopes of attracting nurses.
is created. First, there will be even So where is the good news you ask? The
fewer nurses, because baby boomers make good news is that nurse recruitments are
up such a large part of the current showing "some" success. Young people are
nursing workforce. The second part of the showing a renewed interest in nursing,
problem is that as baby boomers, 28% of due in large part to huge marketing
our population, retire they will require campaigns put out by nursing schools and
more healthcare as a part of the aging healthcare organizations. The flip side
process. of this is that these young people are
As you can see, there are some serious going for the high level nursing degrees
healthcare problems that need to be such as Registered Nurse (R.N.) and Nurse
addressed. Leaders in the healthcare Practitioners (N.P.), but the lower level
industry have been working extremely hard (lower paying) jobs such as Certified
in trying to find a solution. Sadly their Nursing Assistants (C.N.A.'s) and
efforts are only making minimal impacts Certified Medical Assistants (C.M.A.'s)
in increasing the nursing workforce. remain understaffed. These are the ones
Healthcare companies have tried usually providing direct care while the
everything from raising salaries to RN's and Licensed Practical Nurses
offering outrageous sign on bonuses. (L.P.N.'s) are meeting accreditation
Money does not seem to be the key to get requirements by doing all of the charting
people interested in nursing. Survey a and talking to insurance companies.
group of nurses and most will not The other good news is that insurance
complain about their salary. What they companies are planning ahead and offering
will complain about is the day-to-day long-term care insurance plans that will
workloads that they face. Nurses are allow you or your loved ones the ability
overworked and carry larger and larger to be able to pay nurses for long-term
patient loads as a result of shortages. care services. Many baby boomers are
Combine this with the fact that nurses, taking their future into their own hands
who typically get into healthcare to by taking out these long-term care
provide direct patient care, are being insurance policies.
forced to do more administrative type Finally, leaders in government and the
tasks. Some of these tasks include healthcare industry are working
excessive charting to meet requirements diligently to address what is a
set forth by Medicare and insurance predictable issue. Since these are
companies, and trying to get patients predictable events, they can be planned
care certified, or paid for, by insurance for as much as possible.






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