Nursing Shortage Fallacy?

I work in an inner city ER, and I must say we feel the shortage... 3 nurses trying to get through night and day in a really busy Pediatric ER

or maybe just maybe, with all the crappiness that we deal everyday, we just can't keep nurses... its the abuse that we get from the patients (parents included)

In those areas that feel they have an over abundance of Nurses, is it really an overabundance of Nurses or really a shortage of patients.
As the economy slows many people are putting off elective procedures or if faced with high copay's putting off even necessary procedures.

our area, we lost 20,000 people in the last year due to the downturn in the housing market which reduced our numbers of patients. Due to the economy, census everywhere is beginning to tank. Hospital budgets are if not already squeezed are significantly looking at way of tightening their belts in response to the current economic climate.

Bottom line, only the hospitals keeping budgets in control to weather the crisis will survive in the end that equates to you and me working.

The slumping economy is affecting nursing. Masses of part-time nurses are taking full-time positions during this economic meltdown to keep their households afloat as their breadwinner spouses are losing their jobs. Many retired nurses are reactivating their nursing licenses and returning to the nursing workforce due to the high costs of food and fuel, and the effects of rapidly sinking retirement accounts. This translates into a surplus of nurses.

In addition, census tends to be low during economic downturns. Patients avoid having elective surgeries during recessions because they do not want to be stuck with medical bills, and they do not want to take the time off work. Since more people become unemployed and uninsured during recessions, they are less likely to seek healthcare institutions if they have no medical coverage. This translates into far less patients than usual.

I agree with TheCommuter. This is what we have seen on the east coast also. Many nurses have lost their jobs, laid off, and were unable to easily find new ones (many for the first time). They certainly don't always tell a lot of people, because most of the public seems to think that there are an overabundance of nursing jobs. I have known 6 nurses who were unemployed over the last few months and having difficulty finding a job, including ltc. There are many jobs advertised, but for some reason the nurses are not being offered them. Could some of it also be age-related? (older nurses). Not sure. I am hopeful that things will turn around, maybe in 2009?): I would tell any nurse who is having trouble finding a job to hang on, be persistent and keep the faith!

As other posters noted there is only a shortage due to the pick and choose attitudes alot of students have coming out of school. They zero in on one type of work and if they don't get it right away they continue to ignore other jobs until they realize there isn't any jobs out there! Wrong, there are jobs just not the ones they want. Some areas of the country are saturated with nurses only because everybody wants to move there work and live. I almost think the BORN of Calif should put a rule in place where you can't apply for a license here for a least a year after graduation. I know , this is a bit selfish but I feel it is unfair for all those who go to school here only to have to compete for work with 20 people, 15 of those from other parts of the country. Don't be so picky, take any job and get some good experience then move on later into work you really want to do.

Shobe,
I hear what you are saying, however I believe again due current and future economy none of us may end up in the position of pick and choose. We are truly headed to a thank god I have a job mode for awhile at least. Our economy is not going to improve over night, it is only worsensing at a rate I have never seen in my lifetime.

While the term 'shortage' is misleading, it sure feels like one when there are not enough nurses employed in a facility to adequately staff the shifts. It doesn't really matter too much how many UNemployed (by their own choosing) nurses there are; if they are unwilling to work at the bedside where they are most needed, then a shortage it is. If there's a hundred unemployed, licensed RNs in my county but none of them are willing to pick up a shift at the hospital, it doesn't matter to me that they COULD work, but don't. I'M working short-staffed, so....that's the bottom line.

IMO, as the economy worsens, the need for healthcare does not, only the ability of the people to pay for it, and the hospitals to accomodate the freebies. Reimbursements will go into the toilet, meaning that there will be less $$ to pay the staff, meaning that if now your facility pays for a ratio of 1:6, expect 1:8-9 later. Yes, we all scream about staffing ratios, safe assignments, me included. But just who is going to pay for those lower ratios if the general public has fewer jobs and fewer means for insurance?

I don't doubt that I'll continue to have a job through whatever depression is coming our way (forget recession, we're ALOT closer to the Great Depression than I want to think about). But I also don't doubt that hospitals aren't going to be bending over backwards to make my workload lighter when they are cutting OUT staff, and cutting corners on expenses. If we work through a depression, it's going to be with worse ratios and fewer supplies, mark my words.

This why we DON'T need to import nurses to this country. We have plenty of nurses that are graduating from US schools to fill the jobs out there. . What we don't need is an influx of subpar trained nurses taking jobs from students who work extremely hard just to get through school. Cheap labor equates subadequate workers. With the downturn in the economy and the call for creation of jobs we should be begging our politicians to stop or at least to lessen the working visas we give out each year. I am NOT directing this at any particular group but at ALL foreign trained nurses. At least my many years of experience and an area of great need does help me. Everyone needs to realize why there are less jobs out there and do something about it and stop complaining.

Is this for a school paper on nursing shortage? Are you pro or con for it? lol

yes there is a nursing shortage - nurses are getting older and retiring more and we need new nurses to fill in their spot.