SPOTLIGHT: HUMAN RESOURCES AND HEALTH: South Africa’s ageing nurses: A looming healthcare crisis

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Almost half of the nursing workforce in SA is set to retire in the next 15 years. This suggests existing shortages of nurses will become even greater unless we take concrete steps to boost nurse training and retention.

Nurses make up a large part of the healthcare workforce in South Africa, but almost half of them are set to retire in the next 15 years, making current shortages only the start of what is likely to be a growing problem.

The demographics of enrolled nurses and nursing auxiliaries are only slightly more evenly distributed. “It’s not just the replacement of the actual individuals, but you also have to look at the cumulative experience and wisdom in the health system, and that’s not going to be replaced unless we sort of take action now,”The Rural Health Advocacy Project has been doing a variety of consultations with stakeholders in the nursing field in the past months.

Gamede explains that this crisis will have a negative effect on the ability to provide primary healthcare, given the important role of nurses in this, as well as undermine the health system’s ability to focus on TB and HIV care. Key health indicators, especially of children, and the general ability to reach the health-related Sustainable Development Goals will be compromised., the total number of nurses on their register has increased from around 238,000 in 2011 to around 280,000 in 2020.

She explains that many smaller private schools have closed down because they could not afford to register as an HEI. Public nursing colleges did not meet the requirements, although the Minister of Higher Education created aGeyer says, “The most challenging change is that only universities have been accredited to offer the professional nurse programme – this will result in an almost 80% drop in the production of professional nurses in three years’ time.

The South African Nursing Council’s statistics from 2020 show fewer than a third of nurses are under the age of 40, 27% of registered nurses are in their 50s, 26% in their 40s, and only 21% in their 30s.

 

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I know a few past matriculants who were desperate to become nurses, but no more colleges and they cannot afford private college or varsity. So open the colleges again. What was the rational of them being closed?

Wow kuzawuqhum'uthuli bengakhathali kangaka aba bancinci, sizawuzifaka iidrip ngokwethu.

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