The oldest Baby Boomers will celebrate their 65th birthdays in 2011. In 2030 26% of the US population will be aged 65 or older, compared with 17% today, according to government projections. Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, according to InfoWorld.
However, expect to work in new environments using new technologies. With the demand for a larger healthcare workforce will come funding to improve existing healthcare services, from developing more accurate tests to making drug prescription refills more convenient for patients. Funding for medical research will most likely come from the Baby Boomers themselves.
The Institute of Medicine recently outlined a strategy for developing the healthcare workforce that the increasing demand will require.
''To meet the needs of our aging parents and grandparents, we need to increase the number of geriatric health specialists — both to provide care for those older adults with the most complex issues and to train the rest of the workforce in the common medical problems of old age,'' said Marie Bernard, MD, president of the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, as reported by ScienceDaily.com.
In addition to the increased demand, the healthcare workforce will also be affected by significant numbers of healthcare workers nearing retirement age. According to Leaders in Healthcare, the average age of registered nurses is 47, and the majority of the senior management of hospitals belongs to the Baby Boomer generation. Within the healthcare industry are opportunities for the advancement of qualified individuals to senior-level positions within the next decade.
Leaders in Healthcare suggests four steps the healthcare industry can take to address the staffing crunch. They are:
- Focus on retention. An industry that has until now had a surplus of qualified staff has easily been able to terminate employees who were not measuring up, but that will change as the number of healthcare specialists decreases. Healthcare agencies will need to revisit their employment policies and provide more career growth opportunities.
- Redesign jobs. Provide part-time positions for individuals in the Baby Boomer generation who have passed retirement age but would like to continue working. In addition, provide accommodations to these staff, who, for example, might like to take a lengthy vacation to visit family or to travel.
- Embrace IT capabilities. By establishing protocols and improving operations through the use of computer technology, newer, less-experienced staff will be able to come into the workforce and perform according to industry need.
- Transform ''virtual care.'' Through advanced computer technology, patients can be monitored in the comfort of their homes, thus requiring fewer staff to monitor the day-to-day needs of long-term patients.
