In the recent months our hospital appears to have trouble hiring new nurses, and/or keeping nurses in the hospital. This seems most prvalent on the evening and night shifts. A few thoughts enter my mind right from the start.
#1 - Are there a lack of new grads entering into hospitals?
#2 - Are experienced nurses getting out of the hospital to work with corporate companies, legal nursing, insurance companies, etc?
#3 - Is it d/t pay scales, and shift differentials. I know that in the past shift differentials have decreased. They have decreased to the point, where many nurses working nightshift had their yearly raises (let's say .43 cents an hour), but then the differential was reduced by .50 cents a year for 4-5 years. So they lost .07 cents a year. Currently there is no differential between the evening shift and night shift.
So what is it like at your hospitals? Do they have problems hiring, or keeping the positions filled there? Is there a shortage in your area or part of the country? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.
