Is Nursing Getting Flooded?

Nurses Career Support

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It seems like today everyone and their mom wants to go to school for Nursing and it also seems like it is the most overmarketed degree by colleges and the most sought after career in healthcare......

And man, you always hear about this so called shortage prompting schools to respond by increasing seats in Nursing Programs, and creating options like Accelerated 1 year RN programs combined with the fact that the economy is what it is, and many Vet Nurses are not retiring....

is Nursing heading down that flooded path?

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Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.

Yep.Headed down that path a long time ago.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

It has been flooded for years now.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

That dam has alreaady been breached.....for a few years now.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

Yes, it got flooded a few years ago. However, when the Baby Boomers start retiring and/or dropping to part-time employment, there will be a shortage again in the future.

Also, the current situation feels like a shortage in some areas because of the types of nurses out there in the job market. Many of the "mass of new grads" out there looking for work are not particularly attractive hires to employers at the moment. There is a bit of a mis-match between the type of nurse looking for work and the type of nurse employers are wanting to hire. Much of that is due to the large numbers of new grads that have been produced in the last couple of years -- many of them graduating from programs with minimal clinical experience and not-yet-ready to actually practice competently without extensive/expensive orientation.

Also, a lot of new grads are looking only to "get their foot in the door" and take any job offer they can find, planning to move to a more attractive job as soon as they can (after they have received both orientation from the employer, follow-up experience, and maybe even tuition reimbursement for their further education). Thus, employers have been burned by providing extensive/expensive orientations only to have those nurses leave as soon as they become competent. That makes employers hesitant to hire anyone who doesn't bring a reasonable amount of competentence with them on day 1 -- and preferably someone who has a proven track record of competence in the practice setting and demonstrated committment to the particular specialy (and type of job) they are applying for. That makes many new grads unattractive candidates.

So from the employer's point of view -- it feels like a shortage because they can't find good hires. And yet, there are lots of RN's looking for work.

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