Nursing Manpower at Ministry of Health Hospitals in Beni-Suef Governorate
Research Abstract
resource is essential to meet challenges facedin a rapidly changing healthcare environment(Russel & Laurel, 2011). Nursing manpower for health should bewell managed to improve health servicesefficiently. Human resources for healthdepend on the availability of informationregarding the country's work force and itsneeds and resources (Elvidge, 2011). The growing need for better utilizationof manpower in the delivery of health care isa significant aspect of the national concernfor improving the health care deliverysystem. This need is apparent in all types ofdelivery settings; hospitals, communityhealth centers, and private practices and isalso of major concern to teaching institutions(Hem, 2010).Nursing manpower utilization is anadministrative concept that describes howeffectively health care organizations use itsnursing manpower (Ansari, 2012).Manpower utilization is commonly used toevaluate output in relation to labor costs(Aiken, 2011).Effective utilization of manpower hasthe following advantages: 1) Reductionin cost, 2) Clarity in performing tasks, 3)Saves money and time, 4) Less wastage incase of resources, 5) Organizational goalscan be achieved faster. Effectiveness innursing manpower utilization helps theemployees to find the opportunities and toperform accordingly. Thuseffective utilization of nursingmanpower in the hospitalsleads to easier achievement of theorganizational goals (Donovan & Jackson,2011).The growing gap between the supply ofhealth care professionals and the demand fortheir services is recognized as a key issue forhealth and development worldwide. Policy-makers, planners and managers continue toseek effective means to recruit and retainstaff. One way to achieve this is to estimatethe level of nursing manpower utilization inour hospitals (Donovan & Jackson, 2011).The current study will be conducted toevaluate the effectiveness in the utilization ofnursing manpower and estimate the role ofnursing manpower in achievingorganizational objectives.SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYThe nurse to population ratio wasestimated to be 2.67 nurses per 1000 populationin 2007 (Ministry of Health, 2007), the ratiowas estimated by Sakr and Heiba to be 1.33 per1000 population in 2006. Egypt’s nurse topopulation ratio of 1.33 - 2.67 nurses per 1000population compares to 6.17 in Qatar and 3.3 inJordan. There is no “right” nurse to populationratio since nurses represent one of the inputsused with other resources to produce healthservices (Sakr and Heiba, 2006). Staffingsurvey was conducted at El-Fayoumgovernorate by Ali, Abdou, and El-Wahab(2007) that explored the characteristics ofnursing staff in the studied governorate.However, Beni-Suief general hospital wassuffering from nursing shortage that reflectedon high nurse patient’s ratios whichconsequently affects the quality patient care. Also, there is a serious phenomenon thatwill maximize problem of nursing shortagewhich is escaping of nurses from nursing careerto other careers. Therefore, this study has asignificant importance as it will review thenursing manpower utilization at Beni-Suefgovernorate hospitals that facilitate studyingand analyzing rates, causes of nurses' shortage,and its pattern or any misdistribution of nursingmanpower. Data will be helpful in predictingfuture nursing manpower needed and to plancreative retention and recruitment strategies ofhigh qualities of nurses to achieve organization
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