Nurses Wanted: Apply Within

Essay by chalupa37University, Bachelor'sA+, April 2004

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Nurses Wanted: Apply Within

There is a direct link between the nursing shortage and an increase of patient deaths according to an October 2002 study by the University of Pennsylvania. Who is to blame for the shortage of United States trained registered nurses to fill the thousands of nationwide positions in hundreds of specialty areas? Fingers have pointed to the lack of formal mentoring programs, managed medical care, and implemented short-term staffing solutions. Note the typical profile of the registered nurse of 2003: Ninety-four percent are female, average age is 48 with 77% of all nurses over age 40, and thirty-five percent of working nurses are eligible to retire by 2005. Many of this generation had their first experience in a health care setting through programs such as the Candy Striper Program sponsored by the American Red Cross. Such structured mentoring programs today, however, are scarce which fail to provide incentives to choose nursing as a profession.

Until as recently as forty to fifty years ago, most women who elected to work encountered three customary options: teacher, nurse, secretary, or flight attendant (then known as stewardess). In today's robust economy, young people are presented with many choices for careers, and nursing must compete with a more lucrative workforce. Many are more profitable and less demanding than caring for the sick. Nursing is a very difficult, demanding profession. It takes a lot of time, effort and giving. The factors that will induce young people to choose a nursing career are the same as those cited for retention of the current nursing work force. Hospitals will have to develop personnel policies and benefits comparable to those in other lines of work and businesses, including opportunities for career advancement, lifelong learning, flexible work schedules, and policies that promote institutional loyalty. Popular short-term...