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Lifelong Learners By JoAndrea Costner
USING EDUCATION TO ADDRESS NURSING SHORTAGE
While COVID-19 is still at the forefront of our minds in nursing, there are several other topics and trends creating a buzz. One major new trend is travel nursing. Travel
nurses are usually registered nurses who work short-term assignments in various health care agencies. Facilities are losing many full-time staff nurses to this industry. What is the draw to travel nursing? Te short answer is compensation. Travel nurses are compensated at rates significantly higher than those of staff nurses—sometimes an additional $30,000 per year. Te loss of full-time nurses to travel nursing is exacerbating an already trending nursing shortage. Te shortage is being discussed in the media, in nursing journals, reference books and in schools of nursing. Contrary to popular belief, the nursing shortage did not begin because of the pandemic. Te shortage was recognized as early as 2010. What was trending then, is still trending; according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (of which Queens is a member), a significant number of nurses are retiring, and not enough nurses are there to take their place. In addition, there is a shortage of nursing faculty in
nursing programs. It is projected that nearly one-third of all nursing faculty will retire within the next ten years. A shortage in nursing faculty is connected to the shortage of nurses available for the workforce. Insufficient faculty leads
to fewer students being accepted into nursing programs, resulting in a reduction of students graduating, taking the licensure exam, and accepting jobs as registered nurses. It is a cycle that has continued for many years. To combat this issue, nursing education is trending.
Many schools of nursing now offer accelerated programs, which allow students to complete their nursing education in less than two years. Queens offers this option to second-degree-seeking students. Te option is designed for students to complete the undergraduate nursing degree (BSN) within one year. While the shortened timeframe may be concerning, it is necessary to mention that the quality of education is not compromised. Students are well-prepared for the workforce. Queens has graduated hundreds of nursing students in this option, helping decrease the effects of the nursing shortage. Tough these trends seem pessimistic, one continuing
trend is that nursing has been voted as the most trusted profession every year since 1990 (except for 2001 when firefighters received this honored recognition). Tis tells us that despite a nursing shortage and a nursing faculty shortage, our patients, families and communities still value and respect all that we do. Registered nurses are educated, valuable, caring and compassionate. Regardless of what’s trending, we continue to work for the good of our patients and the good of the profession. As Florence Nightingale stated, “Let us never consider ourselves finished nurses…we must be learning all of our lives.”
—JoAndrea Costner, EdD, MSN, RN, CNE is assistant professor of Nursing and serves as Chair of the BSN Program at Queens.
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