We’ve talked before about the shortage of nurses in Michigan. Now there’s a new report that looks at the entire healthcare industry for the state…and it isn’t good.
Here are Five Fast Facts about the coming healthcare shortages in Michigan:
- 📉 The Big Picture - A new study by the nonprofit Michigan Health Council predicts that almost every part of healthcare will have staffing shortages in the next 10 years. So basically, if you get sick…go to Wisconsin.
- 💾 Data Backup - There have been stories highlighting these upcoming shortages for several years, but this study provides concrete data to confirm those stories. Hopefully this means action will be taken!
- 🗺️ Location, Location, Location - Not every healthcare role will have shortages overall, but even those that don’t will have challenges with distribution. Workers are located more heavily in urban areas, so there will still be “shortages” in rural areas.
- 😕 It’s All In Your Head - One of the biggest problems is with mental health professionals - ⅔ of them are in the Ann Arbor-Detroit region alone, and over half of the state’s counties have only one or none at all. But hey, with all that new broadband access, maybe they could just stream episodes of Shrinking.
- 🦷 Top And Bottom - The study found that the “healthiest” role over the next decade is Nurse Practitioners, and the “unhealthiest” role is dental assistants. That one we understand - who wants to look at other people’s gross teeth without getting paid the big bucks??
🔥Bottom line: In all seriousness, this is a very big problem for all of us. Typically, shortages mean that wages will have to go up in order to attract more people, so that could be a good thing. It might also encourage some folks to go into these fields that wouldn’t have otherwise. But in the meantime, things could be a little rough for those who need help the most, and with that help being their actual lives and health, that’s not something that should be taken lightly (or be ignored).
What do you think should be done about this?
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