Qualified nurses and other healthcare professionals are in high demand in the United States, especially in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic. Americans in general are living longer and with a large segment of the population aging, the U.S. requires more health care. While the turnover rate for full-time and part-time hospital staff has decreased to 17.2% in 2023, down from 22% in 2021 in which the COVID-19 pandemic was a major factor, this rate is still higher than pre-pandemic rates of just over 16%, and 25 percent of hospitals have a turnover rate of at least 20.7% according to the 2024 NSI National Health Care Retention and RN Staffing Report.
Hospitals and healthcare facilities have been dealing with nursing shortages for years as there are not enough new nursing graduates to replace the nurses who are leaving the field. Of the nurses who are graduating today, about half of them may not be in nursing in five years. It is beneficial for hospitals to have a 50/50 mix of seasoned and inexperienced nurses in their unit or patient care could be at risk. The nurses who are still in the field are working long hours and experiencing burnout, and healthcare facilities have to rely on traveling nurses to help fill their staff. The temporary status of traveling nurses makes it hard to keep a stable nursing staff which impacts the quality of care that patients receive.
One of the best solutions available to healthcare facilities to resolve this issue is international nurse staffing. Hospitals and healthcare facilities can hire international nurses that can start working immediately and alleviate the issues that result when a facility is understaffed. Healthcare facilities can improve their nurse-to-patient ratio and help prevent burnout among their existing staff which will result in better patient care.
Hospitals, staffing agencies, and healthcare facilities interested in bolstering their staff with international nurses can work with companies like JobGraze to find international nurses who are ready to work in the U.S. The following are the main benefits of hiring international nurses.
Address Nursing Shortages
The main benefit of hiring international nurses is that U.S. healthcare facilities and hospitals can quickly address nursing shortages. The U.S. is facing a nursing shortage for several reasons, including less new nurses graduating from nursing school and more nurses leaving the field to pursue other careers or because they are retiring. This imbalance is leading to significant shortages that are leaving many facilities understaffed and negatively affecting patient care.
Healthcare organizations looking to hire international nurses can access candidates from a global talent pool of qualified nurses who are ready and willing to work in the U.S. There are a large number of nursing candidates in countries such as Canada, Mexico and the Philippines who can immediately join U.S. healthcare organizations.
At JobGraze, we help international nurses meet the criteria necessary to obtain their visas and work in the U.S. When you work with JobGraze to hire international nurses, you will have access to qualified nurses who are ready to immediately join your staff.
Rely Less on Traveling Nurses
Since the pandemic, many hospitals and healthcare facilities have been hiring traveling nurses to help fill their nursing staff. While hiring traveling nurses is effective as a short-term solution, they are only temporary and do not provide a long-term solution for facilities that are short-staffed. Traveling nurses also come at a higher cost for healthcare organizations as the demand for traveling nurses boosted their compensation to more than double that of permanent nursing staff.
Hiring international nurses is a more permanent and cost-effective solution. There may be some upfront costs when hiring international nurses, such as relocation costs, but they receive compensation that is comparable to that of the permanent nursing staff which makes them more cost-effective in the long run than traveling nurses. Hiring international nurses can also help healthcare organizations build a more consistent and sustainable workforce instead of relying on a rotating temporary workforce. Building a more consistent workforce with international nurses improves the quality and continuity of patient care.
Reduce Burnout and Increase Retention
Nurses at hospitals and healthcare facilities that are short-staffed commonly work extra shifts and care for a higher number of patients which leads to burnout. This not only negatively impacts the quality of patient care, but also decreases retention as nurses who are emotionally drained and physically exhausted are more likely to leave the profession.
Hiring international nurses to fill out the staff improves the nurse-to-patient ratio and reduces the need for nurses to take on an excessive workload. This allows nurses to take more time off and focus on providing quality patient care without feeling overwhelmed, leading to higher job satisfaction and better retention rates. Studies have shown that having a full nursing staff and stable workforce improves the quality of patient care, reduces medical error, and increases employee satisfaction.
Increase the Cultural Diversity of Nursing Staff
International nurses are a great addition to a local nursing staff because they bring cultural diversity to healthcare organizations and their communities. A multicultural, multilingual nursing staff is better equipped to communicate with patients, especially in areas that are also multicultural. International nurses can speak with patients who’s first language is not English which eliminates language barriers that could impact the quality of patient care.
International nurses also bring new ideas and practices that could be instrumental in improving the overall quality of patient care. They tend to have a strong work ethic and are committed to their career as they may be responsible for supporting their parents and other loved ones in their home country.
Hire International Nurses with JobGraze
As the nursing shortage in the U.S. continues, hospitals and healthcare facilities can build a sustainable workforce and improve the quality of patient care by hiring international nurses. The most obvious benefit of hiring international nurses is increasing nursing staff but it also has the added benefits of relying less on traveling nurses, lowering the cost of labor (which is the highest expense for many employers), reducing burnout, increasing the retention of nurses, and adding cultural diversity to the staff. Healthcare organizations can get immediate help from qualified international nurses by working with a staffing agency like JobGraze to find the right talent.
JobGraze is a workforce logistics platform that connects healthcare organizations and staffing agencies to qualified nursing candidates seeking international nursing jobs in the U.S. Our network includes more than 70,000 Registered Nurses holding BSN degrees. We can help meet your staffing requirements by matching you with international nurses who are best suited to meet your requirements, and we offer an employment guarantee in which we will replace nurses at no extra charge. When working with JobGraze, you can expect a 99% retention rate and more than $10.5 million in annual savings per hospital.
To start finding qualified international nursing candidates for your staff, book a consultation meeting to learn more about how JobGraze can help.
