Hospitals shift to virtual nurses to address labor shortage
FLORIDA, UNITED STATES — To address the healthcare staff shortage crippling American systems, hospital organizations have shifted to virtual nurses.
At the recent HIMSS24 preconference Virtual Care Forum, healthcare executives urged other medical systems to use virtual nurses to help with patient care.
According to Dr. Murielle Beene, senior vice president and chief health informatics officer at Trinity Health, the scarcity of workers triggered them to use virtual nurses.
In this care model, patients receive treatment from a direct care registered nurse, an on-site nursing assistant or licensed practical nurse, and a registered nurse who provides virtual support.
Specifically, virtual nurses are located on local campuses rather than an off-site call center. This gives them quick access to medical records and the ability to examine the patient closely using advanced camera technologies.
Beene noted that this system has not only helped them ease the burden of floor nurses but also provided other benefits.
“Through the data we’ve been collecting, which divide between the impact to our colleagues, the impact to our patients and impact to our organization, we’re finding efficiencies that we haven’t seen before,” she said, per MobiHealthNews.
The World Health Organization projects a worldwide shortage of nine million nurses and midwives worldwide by 2030.
