The Nursing Shortage

Make no mistake about it. The nation is under a severe nursing shortage unlike anything ever seen before. Just take a look at these alarming November reports:

Nursing Shortage News

ABC news says the shortage puts patients at risk and that “The Rural Doctors Association is calling on the Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS) to urgently recruit more nurses to Coolah Hospital in central western New South Wales.” (http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/12/2740411.htm)

The Winnipeg Sun reports, “The number of vacant nursing positions in Winnipeg emergency rooms could compromise the care of sick patients, Manitoba’s opposition health critic suggested yesterday.” “They cannot provide safe, quality care when you’ve got a shortage of 81 nurses in our ERs,” Driedger said. “The ER nursing shortage is the worst it’s been in four years.”
(http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/winnipeg/2009/10/23/11497856-sun.html)

Hudson Valley reports, “According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the nation is experiencing a nursing shortage that will intensify as baby boomers age and health care needs grow. And educators, business leaders and government officials continue to express concern over the country falling behind in mathematics, science, technology and innovation, and the lack of qualified mathematics and science teachers.” (http://www.hvpress.net/news/125/ARTICLE/8206/2009-11-06.html)

Williamsport Sun-Gazette reports, “As the heaviest users of health care, the nation’s rising numbers of elderly will make big demands on the entire medical system. Quality of care faces further pressures with the ongoing nationwide nursing shortage and expected shortage of available physicians.”
(http://www.sungazette.com/page/content.detail/id/534319.html?nav=5011)

A Solution in the Works?

We could go on and on with thousands of similar reports because we truly are in the middle of a nation-wide epidemic. Behind that epidemic are a number of contributing factors ranging from aging patients to a lack of sufficient nurse educators. In-between, we’re dealing with fewer students and a veteran nurse force on the verge of retirement. The end result is an industry at risk.

So what’s being done about it?

There’s plenty of uproar over the shortage, and a lot of institutions try to entire new nurses with very attractive employment packages. The US Department of Labor even awarded over $12 million in grants to job training institutions. But the real solution to this problem lies within individuals like you. Throwing money at the problem isn’t a solution. Hiring qualified, professional nurses is the solution. The only way to hire qualified, professional nurses of course is through creating them.

Your Role In the Nursing Shortage

Since nursing schools can’t provide enough qualified teachers, you’ll need to enroll into an online nursing program. The University of Phoenix and Kaplan University are two example online institutions that provide the training you need to become one of thousands, much-needed in-demand nurses. And the benefits of online nursing programs are plenty.

Nowhere else can you mold a schedule around your existing lifestyle. Doing such at a brick and mortar institution is almost unheard of. Online, you can enroll as a part-time or full-time student and earn your BSN or MSN while working at a current job. All the benefits you’d expect from a work-at-home type job are available with this learn-at-home environment.

Of course, the nursing job has its own rewards as well with much needed job security being the number one benefit.