The rapidly aging U.S. population and increased incidence of acute and chronic diseases are some of the challenges the healthcare system will face in the near future. Studies show that the healthcare system will experience a shortage of qualified healthcare professionals as providers near retirement age. According to the American Association of Medical Colleges, the U.S. will face a shortage of 40,800 to 104,900 physicians by 2030 (Kirch & Petelle, 2017). The shortage for surgical specials is even more alarming! The same organization reported that a third of the nursing workforce aged 55 years or older have expressed a desire to rear in the next ten years. Unfortunately, as healthcare professionals continue to age and rear, fewer younger people are replacing them. Therefore, the rates at which the healthcare industry is losing health professionals surpasses provider replacement rates.
You are a healthcare administrator at the director level in a large academic health system in your state. The Director of Human Resources has brought to your aenon that seven out of twelve primary care providers (PCP) in your hospital have notified Human Resources of their plans to rear within the next three years. Knowing how hard it is to recruit PCPs, the Director wants a proactive approach to the anticipated shortage. The Director is worried about the potential impact this would have and asks you to discuss the situation with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Your CEO is aware of some provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), especially the establishment of the National Health Care Workforce
Commission (NHCWC). However, the CEO is not sure what those provisions are and how your hospital can benefit from them as an academic health institution. The CEO asks you to educate him and the Board of Directors on these provisions relate to the circumstances identified above.
Your assignment is to write a memo to your CEO and address the following:
- State the problem and its impact on how care is delivered to your hospital.
- Discuss the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in regards to the purpose of the National Health Care Workforce Commission (NHCWC).
- Discuss how your institution may benefit from the provisions in the ACA/NHCWC.
- Ensure your proposal details specific solutions to the potential shortage of PCPs at your hospital. You may address this issue from either an operational, resources management or policy perspective.
Length: 2‐3 pages.
References: Use a minimum of 3 scholarly resources.
Your memo should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas