RECRUITMENT to the profession

oramar · Nov 7, 2001

After you read this thread make sure your read the thread on recruitment of foreign nurses. The two issues are closely related.

Peeps Mcarthur · Nov 7, 2001

That all sounds just peachy.

I wonder if these funds will apply to ANYONE this time.

It would be nice if they would use GPA as a measuring stick for a change instead of your obligatory ethnicity + unemployed = assistance formula that has never resolved any problem, only created new ones.

GPA should be considered first, but since that's only logical it can never compute.

I've seen a scholarship here in Maryland that will pay EVERYTHING for as long as you go to school, LPN, RN, PHD, Astronaut, whatever......the first requirement is that you need to be poor and remain poor. The second requirement is that you maintain at least a "C" average:rolleyes: Big freaking deal. This is just cultivating "career students".......It says "do just enough to get by and the taxpayer will foot the bill"...........sound familiar?

For cryin' out loud, give away our tax dollars based on GPA and put some decent nurses into the workforce, or at least those that have a good chance of MAKING it to the workforce. Forget the income guidelines. Run it all based on GPA and flood the workforce with those that are willing to work for it, instead of those that have nothing better to do than hang out in school.

Brad

Columbia, MD

-jt · Nov 7, 2001

The bill, when it becomes law, will FUND the programs, grants, and scholarships. I dont think there are any set requirements of eligibility yet but I do believe the student will be expected to have a decent GPA.

One idea from the ANA has been to offer full tuition scholarships and full loan repayment forgiveness to nursing students who agree to work in an underserved area of their state for a period of time in facilities which they choose themselves from a list of facilities with shortages.

But first there needs to be the money for that - which is what this bill provides. So how about we first work to get this law passed, to get the money made available, & then we can work on what the scholarships & grants ought to be.

The way to do that is by contacting our Congressmen & US Senators & telling them we are nurses, we vote, & we want them to support the Nurse Reinvestment Act as well as the Nurse Retention and Quality of Care Act 2001.

Nurses could even go to the website, print out the fact sheet on it & send it to them to show them why:

http://www.ana.org/gova/federal/gfederal.htm

Peeps Mcarthur · Nov 8, 2001

I appreciate your effort, as will I'm sure all those who will benefit from it. I sincerly don't want to believe that it wouldn't be a great boost for the profession. That being said,I can't imagine the administrative body of these programs considering anything more than what has always been the methodology in the past. As administrators they will be duty bound by the guidelines for the disbursements......and we all know how that's going to turn out.

The program that I mentioned in the last post. It's run in the typical fashion. The fact is, they're funding average students and getting below average results. They don't have any students from this years "underachiever loto" that will be able to get into the LPN program on the first go around. :eek: That's scary. Think about that, the LPN PROGRAM.

While trying to target the "disadvantaged" (voters) they ended up with exactly what they asked for. The same people that have been unmotivated to earn above the poverty level in the first place.

Base the entitlement on GPA alone. Why not? The funds are supposedly going to fund the influx of nurses into the profession, not to raise the average wage of the poor.

Of course, I'm the bitter 4.0 student that's working his butt off to pay for it that's going to end up working for the government funded "c" student some day.

If they can get one into the LPN program that is.

:rolleyes:

Thanks..........that feels much better.

Brad

Columbia, MD

-jt · Nov 8, 2001

ok glad you feel better.

I looked back over the bill & didnt see anything there that says the grants and scholarships will just be for disadvataged people. In fact, some of this bill allows for students like you to apply for loan repayment and tutition reimbursement if they were willing to work for a specified period of time in a facility that was experiencing a shortage.

So, with that in mind, might you be able to support this bill & write your Congressman and Senators to that regard so we can get this law in place?

Congrats on that great GPA. What an accomplishment! You have every right to be very proud.

thisnurse · Nov 8, 2001

brad i can understand your frustration. keeping a 4.0 in nursing school is certainly no easy task. you must have worked your butt off.

but try to remember that not all nursing students given a break with scholarships are below average, lazy or professional students.

i attended a community college program. my first semester i got a federal grant for some of my tutition. i had to maintain a "c" average to keep it. i agree...thats not much of a requirement. and certainly substandard for me. i worked so hard in school, raised 4 kids, and worked as a cna. it took me nearly 5 years to get my degree with all of the prerequisites and time constraints i had with my kids. most of the time i was in school i also had a 4.0 gpa. i WORKED HARD for that. my lowest gpa was a 3.5. as my schooling progressed and i was able to prove myself, the government granted me more and more money. by the end of school they were paying for ALL my expenses, books, uniforms, tuition, and even a little extra.

do i feel i DESERVED that? no. i was LUCKY to get what i got. now i feel like i have to give it back with volunteer work. thats ok...im not complaining. i dont HAVE to do anything but i will because thats the kind of person i am, and brad...i dont think im in the minority.

yeah you are going to have professional students who take advantage of grants but if out of all the students funded you have 2 that are like me and 1 that takes advantage...thats not too bad.

you have to remember, these students who try to take advantage of the system arent going to make it thru nursing school.

nursing school is DAMN hard and it really takes over your life. those ppl who arent dedicated to the profession wont make it.

i dont think the guidlines to this act should be based on income alone, i think that they should also have academic standards. i dont know about raising it to a B tho. some ppl are very intelligent but not book smart.

we NEED to support this.

and congrats on your gpa...i know you really worked hard and it is quite an achievement.

Peeps Mcarthur · Nov 8, 2001

Thisnurse,

You could have stopped at the "raised four kids" , hell I've got a challenge just deciding what flavor of Hot Pockets to microwave

The fact is, you sound like someone that I would be happy to give my tax dollars to. You did "deserve" it, and you did honor it. It's nice to know the students I'm aware of could just be an anomaly.

Anyway it's very annoying to know that I'll be in clinicals AND working a steady job just to get a lousy two grand a year tuition reimbursement, and attach an employment agreement to it.

I hope that some of the students served by that bill have as much heart as you do, but I think that in this programs case anyway, it's assuring failure. "Low income" doesn't automaticaly make someone a lazy scumbag, but it should NOT have anything to do with the disbursal of funds for professional training. Vocational schools yes, but not Nursing.

I talked to a couple of recruiters at a job fair today, and the best deal I see so far would pay for the majority of my tuition, not pick up books and supplies, and have an employment commitment. I feel much better knowing that I can SOME help. Now I just gotta figure out how to get the kinks worked out of the bus schedule:rolleyes:

thisnurse · Nov 9, 2001

thanks peeps :)

i dont feel like i deserve it. i feel like its a fluke. not that im ungrateful....i am VERY grateful, its just that everyone i know had to pay their own way and i didnt. makes me feel kinda guilty or something.

but i have taken it as a sign that this is WHAT IM SUPPOSED TO DO... from a "higher power". and i know that ill be very successful in this field. i will pay this back not only thru volunteer work but in the way i care for every one of my patients.

i think the way it was handled with me was perfect. i only got my basic tution paid at first. i had to PROVE myself academically and the grants increased once they saw i was serious.

if income is not a consideration then our government will be "buying" all the new nurses, for lack of better terms. i cant say i want the government all that involved in our profession.

we saw what happened when the clintons tried to reform health care. while i agree we do need some laws to protect us AND our patients, we need to stop looking to the government as the answer. there are enuff of us to unite and form ONE union who will dictate standards...the answers we are looking for lie there, not with the government.

-jt · Nov 9, 2001

Are you referring to the situation you have now? Maybe I missed something in the 24 pages of this bill but I dont see any details in the new bill I was referring to that would suggest funds will be given ONLY to students who are disadvantaged. Are you just assuming that this will be the case with the new grants, loans, scholarships, and reimbursements that the new law would provide based on past experience? This bill does make mention in one section that first consideration for tuition & loan forgiveness will be given to students who are willing to work in underserved areas. But the bill itself makes no suggestion that these students be of any particular income level, ethnicity, or GPA. It appears that the most important thing is the agreement to "give back" for your education by working where nurses are most needed - not forever - but for a specific period of time.

There are several different allocations designed in the bill. Some are specifcally earmarked to increase recruitment of minority groups that are presently under-represented in the profession. Some are allocations for those students who demonstrate a financial need. But that is not all the bill allows for.

There are also other allocations that will be given to the agency, association, school, hospital, facility to supply as scholarships to their members, employees, students - to attend nursing school. No requirements on the students who receive the money are set in the bill itself and will probably be determined at a future time by the individual entity that is awarding the scholarship. So I dont see how anyone reading this bill would get the impression that it says money will be used only for certain groups. It doesnt say anything of the kind.

There are also allocations to be awarded for everyone from CNAs, LPNs, & staff RNs to Public Health nurses, RN Educators, ect. The list is very long & can be read in section 861 of H.R. 1436 and S.706. There are 24 pages in the House of Representatives bill, 19 pages in the Senate bill & I did not see any mention of the kind of thing you are bitter about. In the meantime, they are talking about providing millions of dollars for the education of nurses.

We all need to write our legislators & tell them to approve it.

Washington, DC - April 6, 2001 -- The American Nurses Association applauds the introduction this week of The Nurse Reinvestment Act in the Senate and the House of Representatives. The legislation, which comprises two companion bills, S. 706 and H.R. 1436, was introduced in the Senate by Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), James Jeffords (R-VT), Tom Daschle (D-SD), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) and 18 other senators, and in the House by Reps. Lois Capps (D-CA), Sue Kelly (R-NY) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), along with 24 other representatives.

The proposed act establishes the National Nurse Service Corps, which would fund nurse scholarships; public service announcements; grants for continuing education, recruitment and training; enhanced loan repayment programs; scholarships, loans and stipends to encourage nursing faculty development; and increased Medicare and Medicaid funding for nurse education.

ANA President Mary Foley, MS, RN, hailed the introduction of the companion bills, stating they "will serve the dual purpose of attracting young people into nursing while also retaining current nurses who wish to further their education." Even more critical, Foley noted, "These bills will help counter a looming shortage of nurses that may soon reach crisis proportions, as the nation's aging baby boom population begins placing greater demands on the U.S. health care system."

The growing nursing shortage has increasingly affected hospitals, home health agencies, nursing facilities and other providers across the nation. Areas hardest hit include emergency room, critical care, labor and delivery, and long-term care units.

Contributing to the shortage of nurses are several serious workplace issues -- including the use of mandatory overtime and other short-staffing practices -- which have led to a serious decline in working conditions and have driven increasing numbers of nurses away from acute-care settings.

Another cause of the shortage is a lack of young people entering the nursing profession. For example, enrollments in undergraduate nursing programs have declined 17 percent since 1995. And current projections show that the number of nurses per capita will fall 20 percent below requirements by the year 2020, largely as a result of increasing nurse retirements coupled with the impending health care needs of the aging baby boom generation.

"If nothing is done to address this shortage, America will soon find itself without adequate numbers of nurses to care for its rapidly aging population," Foley said. "That is why making a reinvestment in our nation's nurses is so crucial. The funding for education provided by this legislation will help to boost nursing school enrollments, and will also encourage existing nurses to go back to school and increase their levels of education."

Foley added that ANA is particularly pleased by the mix of reimbursement incentives, innovative recruitment techniques and funding for outreach and publicity contained in the bill. "One viable solution to the emerging nursing shortage lies in targeting and increasing our nation's existing nurse population -- and this bill goes a long way toward achieving that aim," she said.

Foley also expressed optimism regarding this and other recent efforts in Congress to bolster the nursing profession in general. "It is my hope that, in the long run, Congress will act not only to help attract more nurses to the profession, but also to open up a greater public dialogue regarding establishing better working conditions for nurses -- so we can retain the new nurses we recruit."

for more details: http://www.ana.org/gova/federal/legis/107/funding.htm

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-jt · Nov 9, 2001

It might surprise you to know that this new bill even includes funding for a student's transportation as well as funding for childcare while the student attends class.

The best thing about the bill is that does not provide funds JUST for the disadvantaged. You might have more $$$ available to you if we had this law in place already.

thisnurse · Nov 9, 2001

thanks jt for the post and the clarification :)