Purpose
To estimate the number of practicing nurses required to resolve staffing differences between capital and non-capital regions and analyze the relationship between regional differences in staffing and salary.
Methods
Using public data on population, patients, newly licensed nurses, practicing nurses, and annual salaries, regional differences were analyzed in newly licensed nurses per population, practicing nurses per population, practicing nurses per patient (i.e., staffing level), and salary. The number of additionally required practicing nurses was estimated by multiplying staffing differences by the number of patients in the lower-staffed region.
Results
During 2002~2022, 71,107 and 243,611 newly licensed nurses were supplied, while the number of practicing nurses increased by 91,886 and 88,070 in the capital and non-capital regions, respectively. The non-capital region had more practicing nurses per population, whereas the capital region had more practicing nurses per patient. In 2020, 31,330 practicing nurses were additionally required in the non-capital region. Salaries were higher in the capital region, and regional salary differences increased during 2011~2020. Regional salary differences were associated with regional staffing differences and the number of additionally required practicing nurses.
Conclusion
Government and health insurance policies are required to encourage hospitals in the non-capital region to improve staffing and salaries.

Citations

• Changes in Nursing Grades and Nurse Staffing Levels following the 2024 Revision of Nursing Management Fee Standards: A Focus on Tertiary Hospitals and Medical Institutions in Seoul
  Hyeyoung Choi, Kiyoung Kim, Su-Jin Cho, Suyong Jeong
  Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service Research.2025; 5(1): 58.     CrossRef