Personnel shortages and the provision of long-term care: an empirical analysis of German nursing homes
Amidst demographic shifts, advanced economies are facing critical nursing shortages. This study analyzes how long-term care in German nursing homes relate to these shortages using administrative data for the period 2007 to 2017. Our analysis reveals that higher nursing shortages correlate with decreased nurse-to-resident ratios, changes in the qualification mix of nurse personnel, and reduced occupancy rates. These findings suggest that nurse shortages might be a threat to the quality of care and the financial sustainability of nursing homes at the margin of being profitable.
Authors
- Arndt Reichert
- Dörte Heger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3880-6638)
- Annika Herr (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5479-0093)
- Maximilian Lückemann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3954-3080)
- Leonie Tycher
Institutions
- Leibniz University Hannover (DE)
- RWI – Leibniz Institute for Economic Research (DE)
- Hochschule für Gesundheit - University of Applied Sciences (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The European Journal of Health Economics
- Published
- 2025-05-09
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s10198-025-01782-7
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Geriatric Care and Nursing Homes
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.63
Funders
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover