Nurses Wanted: Apply Within

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 …

…the healthcare industry looked ahead and paid more attention to increasing salaries, providing benefits, offering training, developing career ladders, and attracting young people into the profession, the American nursing work force would stabilize. The connotation is that we need nurses and let's go get them from other countries, and then when the demand declines, we can forget about this. It gives a harmful message to the nursing profession that this is a disposable work force.