Given the Texas Nursing Shortage-What is being done to attreact nurses?

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Specializes in Post Partum,Med Surg, Ob/Gyn.

It seems like we should be using the same initiatives used to attract teachers. Initiatives like loan forgiveness would help? What do you think?

Sorry about the typo

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Specializes in RN, Cardiac Step Down/Tele Unit.

I agree that student loan programs would help - Government and hospital-based. Before I decided to go to nursing school I considered law school. I was eligible for loans and grants, including a tuition equalization grant that would have made my private school tuition equal to that of the state schools. As a 2nd degree student, there are no grant programs for 2nd degree students, and the Federal loans won't cover 1/3 of my private school tuition. I ended up taking out private loans for the entire balance. Seems like the Government would want to encourage career changes into the nursing field with some tuition programs!

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The problem isn't about recruiting people who want to become nurses. We have plenty of those. What we need: slots in nursing schools. In order to have more slots, we need more faculty.

Right now, graduate-educated nurses (your potential nursing faculty) can often find more rewards in areas outside of education.

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So sad but oh so true. :(

The problem isn't about recruiting people who want to become nurses. We have plenty of those. What we need: slots in nursing schools. In order to have more slots, we need more faculty.

Right now, graduate-educated nurses (your potential nursing faculty) can often find more rewards in areas outside of education.

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Call me the lone dissenter, but I disagree that there is a nursing shortage. The problem is that hospitals are so concerned about their bottom line that they habitually understaff all of the units until the nurses reach breaking point and LEAVE.....to become case managers, work in clinics, pursue advanced degees..........you name it.

If they would somehow become in tune to the needs of the existing nurses, offer RETENTION bonuses and not try to siphon $$$ away from nurses so it can drift up to the upper management...........then maybe more nurses would stick around and their would not be a shortage ?

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So if hospitals are intentionally understaffing nurses and in essence making their workload that much harder until the nurses reach their breaking point and resign... Wouldn't this be contributing to a nursing shortage?

Call me the lone dissenter, but I disagree that there is a nursing shortage. The problem is that hospitals are so concerned about their bottom line that they habitually understaff all of the units until the nurses reach breaking point and LEAVE.....to become case managers, work in clinics, pursue advanced degees..........you name it.

If they would somehow become in tune to the needs of the existing nurses, offer RETENTION bonuses and not try to siphon $$$ away from nurses so it can drift up to the upper management...........then maybe more nurses would stick around and their would not be a shortage ?

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So if hospitals are intentionally understaffing nurses and in essence making their workload that much harder until the nurses reach their breaking point and resign... Wouldn't this be contributing to a nursing shortage?

Yeah, but it is a marketplace shortage and not a REAL shortage. I would bet their is an adequate number of actual RN's out there...either out of the workplace due to the conditions described above or who have placed themselves off of the units because of what I described.

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Yeah - it has often been described as a shortage of working nurses.

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You also have to take into account that hospitals think they are saving money by always hiring new nurses. They think they can get new nurses in for less money, spit them out in a couple months or years and get another new nurse. This keeps employees from building up benifits and higher salaries. Kinda makes me sick but thinking like a "big boss man" I can see how it makes sense in their eyes.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

My statements will probably be construed as controversial, but here goes.

There is no nursing shortage. There are over 2.5 million registered nurses in America in addition to the 700,000 licensed practical/vocational nurses. Therefore, there are more than enough currently licensed nurses in this country to solve the so-called 'nursing shortage'.

Here are the problems. A huge portion of these licensed nurses are not working. Many of these licensed nurses abandon the nursing field altogether due to burnout, poor working conditions, and other issues that deserve some sociological research. Additionally, our greatest healthcare needs are at the bedside, but there are too many nurses in management and not enough who are willing to do the 'dirty work' at the bedside. In other words, there are too many 'chiefs' and not enough 'indians'.

There is no shortage of nurses; rather, there's a shortage of nurses who will put up with the crap at the bedside. There's also a shortage of master's-educated nursing instructors. In addition, nursing pay rates will drop if nursing schools admit and graduate a whole flood of new nurses to fill this so-called 'shortage'.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

In addition, not all areas of Texas have a nursing shortage. The Texas Panhandle, which includes Amarillo, actually suffers from an oversupply of nurses. San Antonio has a military and service-based economy, so numerous people in that city pursue nursing, as it is one of the few 'good' careers. San Antonio does not have a nursing shortage because there are numerous nursing schools in the city that churn out new nurses every few months. I know of a few San Angelo nurses who are earning less than $12 per hour. Any city that pays $12 per hour does not have a shortage problem!

One of the few true 'shortage' areas in Texas is the Rio Grande Valley. I don't blame nurses for avoiding that area like the plague due to horrible staffing ratios, the high risk of litigation, etc.

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Specializes in ER, ICU, Psych.

How about for us since a lot of hospitals are self insured any we may not be covered at all, and the ones that are not usually cover only about $5,000 to $10,000 and decide if you will get a lawyer if you don't have your own liability insurance!

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