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Title: Strategies to Encourage Selection of
Nursing as a Career
Author: Vineta Mitchell
RN,
BSN, CCM
Abstract
The health care profession, specifically nursing is
poised to change the face of health care as never
before. Demand for quality nurses continues to escalate.
There will be a need for more than one million new and
replacement nurses will be needed by 2010. This paper
will discuss strategies that will encourage individuals
to select Nursing as a profession,
Strategies to Encourage Selection
of Nursing as a Career
Introduction
The health care profession, specifically nursing is
poised to change the face of health care as never
before. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports
employment among RNs will grow faster than average for
all occupations through 2008. Demand for quality nurses
continues to escalate. The U.S. Department of Labor
projects a 21% increase in the need for nurses
nationwide from 1998 to 2008. There will be a need for
more than one million new and replacement nurses will be
needed by 2010. Nursing is the largest health care
occupation with more than 2 million jobs available as of
2000. By 2015, 114,000 jobs for full-time RNs are
expected to go unfilled nationwide. There was a net per
capita growth of 22% in health services sector
employment, comparable to the national growth rate of
21% As a result, the rising demand for RNs will outstrip
the supply and focused studies document that supply and
demand for RNs are already out of balance (HRSA, 2006).
Trends
In the past, a career in the health care profession,
especially nursing, was considered an opportunity to
save and improve lives, to teach people how to achieve
better health, and to advocate for patients to make sure
they had the best health care, every day. This writer
feels that is no longer true. Although the demand is up
for nurses, individuals' choosing healthcare profession
as a career is not. The lack of the desire to choose a
health care career in nursing is related to several
things (Nash, 2004).
The changing desire of individuals wanting to enter the
health care profession is influenced by higher acuity
levels for hospitalized individuals, low starting
salaries, inflexibility of hours worked, lack of
complete and through training for the job. For example
because the demand for nurses is so high, often not
enough time is allowed for adequate training and
assimilation of information in the clinical setting (Lubin,
1999).
In addition, the technological advances that require
more skills are a factor as well. To compound the issue,
there are decreasing enrollments at nursing schools,
decreasing available qualified nursing instructors,
rising standards of education and an aging workforce (HRSA,
2006). Despite the many challenges and rewards offered
in the health care profession, individuals are not
choosing the health care field as a career. Unless those
issues deterring individuals from choosing nursing as a
profession are corrected, this writer feels there will
continue to be a lack of individuals choosing health
care as a profession.
As the baby boomers in America continue to age and
retire out of the workforce, there is an increased
demands placed on the medical field. It is a well
published fact that there is a decrease amount of
individuals that are interested in a career in the
health care field (Reid, 2003). There are less people
entering the nursing profession than in any time before.
The government, nursing schools and hospitals has been
monitoring the problem for the last 10 years (HRSA,
2006). According to Lubin (1999), "Previous shortages
have been about sufficient numbers of nurses, while this
shortage appears to be about an increased demand for
nurses with competence, skills and experience to meet
patient demand for care in a changing health care system
(p. 1)." Strategies need to be in place to help ease
this shortage.
Strategies
The U.S. Department of Labor has published the median
income for RNs as $48,090 in 2002. The range was $33,970
to $69,670 based on geographic location and work
experience. Nurse Managers made the most money, while
care facility nurses made the least on average at
$43,850. In order to increase the interest in a
healthcare career in nursing, strategies to correct the
salary deficits must be explored. The offering of
sign-on bonuses or well paid per diem work would work as
well (HRSA, 2006). The promotion of more flexible
working hours for nurses is another strategy worth
implementing. For example, in order to attract and
retain nurses, many of whom prefer to work part-time
during their child-bearing and rearing years, it would
behoove hospitals to have reduced hours that must be
worked per week in order to be eligible for benefits
from 20 to 16 (Nash, 2004).
Other strategies for attracting individuals back to the
healthcare field would include assisting individuals in
obtaining education and training required to enter and
advance within the nursing profession (Lubin, 1999).
Career counseling and mentoring to high school students
must happen. Letting individuals know that there are
other pathways for them in nursing. It must be
communicated that Nursing is no longer confined to the
bedside. Today's nurses can now be found in professional
venues once thought impossible.
Nurses now have the ability to choose career
opportunities in non-hospital settings, which often
provide more predictable work hours and less arduous
responsibilities than hospital nursing. Nurses influence
legislation, change health care delivery systems, write
and publish, educate about disease prevention and health
promotion, and participate on boards of directors.
Interested individuals will develop an in-depth
understanding of differentiated practice roles and the
distinct and complimentary responsibilities of the
nursing assistant, practical nurse and professional
nurse through a highly structured and mentored co-op
clinical experience. Getting the word out about the
versatility of the health care profession is a must (HRSA,
2006).
An increase in the multiple points of entry into the
nursing schools, including encouraging individuals to
earn higher degrees, and helping graduates with other
degrees move into nursing would be an incentive as well.
The offering of career ladder program which promote
career advancement for nursing personnel in a variety of
training settings, cross training or specialty training
among diverse population groups and the advancement of
individuals to become advanced education nurses (Nash,
2004).
Conclusion
The Nursing Shortage and it's affects on healthcare
worldwide are a major concern to politicians, healthcare
workers, economists, and consumers alike. Where jobs may
be scarce in some fields, healthcare jobs are growing
exponentially. Because the health care profession must
compete within a vibrant economy that offers
unprecedented opportunities for women, strategies must
be in place if the issues are to be corrected (Lubin,
1999). The healthcare industry must offer better
salaries, incentives and more benefits to attract
individuals to the healthcare field.
References
Andersen, R. (2001). Changing the U.S. health care
system: Key issues in health
services policy and management, (2nd ed.), John Wiley &
Sons, Inc.
HouseReps (2005). House reps hear from governors at
medicaid hearing, Retrieved 12 Dec
2005, from
http://www.house.gov
HRSA (2006). Nursing. Division of Nursing of the U.S.
Department of Health and Human
Services, Retrieved 29 March 2006, from
http:bhpr.hrsa.gov/nursing
HRSA, 2006.) The michigan health workforce: Highlights
from the health workforce profile.US Department of Health and Human Services Bureau of
Health Professions
Retrieved 31 March 2006, from
http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce
Lubin, V. (1999). The environmental scan: The new
nursing shortage. UMDNJ the
Department of Planning, Retrieved 03/30/06, from
http://umdnj.edu
MDCH (2005). Michigan medicaid statistics, retrieved 12
Dec 2005, from
http://www.mich.gov
Nash, M. (2004, Apr). Globalization impacts the
healthcare organization of the 21st
century: Demanding new ways to market product lines
successfully. Nursing
Administration Quarterly, 28 (2), pp 86-91, Retrieved
03/30/06, from
http://umdnj.edu
Reid, R. (2003). Patient-focused care over time: Issues
related to measurement,
prevalence, and strategies for improvement among patient
populations. Retrieved 08
July 2005, University of phoenix,
https://mycampus.phoenix.edu
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