The struggle is real!  Staffing shortages have U.S. nursing homes in crisis. There's a shortage of nursing home beds for the elderly in America due to a severe staffing crisis that has caused long-term care communities to cut back on new move ins, new research shows. Three out of five nursing homes (61%) have limited new move ins due to staffing shortages, according to a survey conducted by the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) of 759 nursing home providers.

Nearly three out of four (73%) are concerned that they’ll have to close their communities over staffing problems, the survey found.

"We project that more than 400 nursing homes could close this year due to this workforce and economic crisis," said Beth Martino, senior vice president of public affairs for the AHCA/NCAL.

Why you ask? The pandemic added strain to a system that was already experiencing shortages. Staffing among nursing homes has been tight for quite some time, Martino said.

"For decades, Medicaid has notoriously underfunded nursing home care, and this chronic underfunding left long-term care providers struggling to compete for qualified, dedicated caregivers," she said. "We have been calling for help for years."

Read the full article at:

https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2022-06-29/staffing-shortages-have-u-s-nursing-homes-in-crisis

What can you do to help? Contact legislators and let them know the nursing home profession needs funding to meet the demands of higher acuity, competing with staffing agency wages/prices, and inflation.  You can also help us promote new people to our profession. If you know of someone that would be good at serving older adults, send them our way.  We can pay for education and provide training.