Is the nursing profession causing its own RN shortage?

[RNDave]

With all the RN's going to NP school, is the profession significantly contributing to the RN shortage? Between retirement and RN's in line to become NP's it seems our unit is on a constant hunt for staff.

[Double Dunker]

I've only been at this a year, but the patients wear on me way more than management, staffing, etc. There are only so many 32-year-old, blind, diabetic patients with an A1C of 15.7 yelling at me about not being allowed to order pizza, mashed potatoes and regular coke that I can take.

[PMFB-RN, RN]

With all the RN's going to NP school, is the profession significantly contributing to the RN shortage? Between retirement and RN's in line to become NP's it seems our unit is on a constant hunt for staff.

I am willing to bet that your unit's staffing issues would disappear if they significantly increased RN pay. Your question is based on a false assumption, that there is a nursing shortage when there isn't.

[NotAllWhoWandeRN, ASN, RN]

So, bedside nurses are non ambitious (not "ambicious" - don't know what that means) med cart pushers, handmaidens (sexist) and "punchbags"?

Hmmm.

Patients absolutely TREAT us as handmaidens and punching bags, but if they think any hospital nurse is just pushing meds and doesn't need scientific/medical skills, I dearly hope they never worked the floor as one.

[NotAllWhoWandeRN, ASN, RN]

My hospital is chronically short staffed in ALL the departments. I work ER and if we get a patient that becomes ICU or DOU then be ready to sit on that patient all day as there are no beds (actually there's plenty of beds, just no nurses to take care of those beds).

Were hiring new grads constantly none stop but nurses quit faster than they can be replaced. And therein lies part of the problem.

Most hospitals that are horribly short staffed all the time either simply don't pay their staff enough money to retain them or don't make the work environment practical to work in.

The staffing problems I've experienced were 100% related to poor treatment of nurses.

[Farawyn]

Patients absolutely TREAT us as handmaidens and punching bags, but if they think any hospital nurse is just pushing meds and doesn't need scientific/medical skills, I dearly hope they never worked the floor as one.

Um, what?

[NotAllWhoWandeRN, ASN, RN]

I am sorry but i really have difficulties finding in my own posts any mentions of "all bedside nurses".

I did mention that doing the same entry-level job for 35 years cannot be named a good career, although it may be satisfactory for someone. I think it is pretty much correct about nursing as about anything else. Staying for 35 years near conveyor belt doing the same operation was considered a career when Henry Ford started his automotive business. Nowadays, it is still a job and respected as such, but it hardly be named a "career".

I did not mean that all bedside nurses are mindless task machines (as a matter of fact, I am working bedside). But, as kalivianya mentioned and as one can easily see from this very forum many posts, in many places they are treated just as such. Add to that anti-intellectualism and bullying culture which are often flourishing in the very same type of places, and also lack of power in decision making and inability to practice the skills and knowledge they posess, and you will better understand at least one reason why so many nurses go back to school.

I am sorry if my posts hurt anyone's feelings.

Fair enough. I still disagree with labeling any nursing job "entry level." What is entry level? Med-surg? Anything that doesn't require extensive specialized training? It's not fair to look down on nursing positions that other people are content with because you don't think they're challenging enough.

[NotAllWhoWandeRN, ASN, RN]

Um, what?

I was saying that some of those labels are how nurses are perceived by the patients, but I don't think it's fair for a nurse to call another nurse a med pusher.

[PMFB-RN, RN]

My ICU is staffed by RNs with an average experience level of 6 months to a year if that most are just off residency. It is a revolving door of attrition every year for various reasons.

There is a nursing shortage with regard to EXPERIENCE. Its not hard to get a brand new into a hospital role but keeping them is a different story.

Sounds like incompetent management. Why do they refuse to take measure to cut turnover?

[PMFB-RN, RN]

"Nursing shortage" is probably an inaccurate way of putting it. There may be plenty of nurses out there. We just continue to have people leaving more than staying.

What you have is incompetent management. They have elected to create a situation where nurses don't wish to stay. They must have their reasons for creating such an environment. Ask them.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

"Nursing shortage" is probably an inaccurate way of putting it. There may be plenty of nurses out there. We just continue to have people leaving more than staying.

I think you know why more nurses are leaving , than staying.

It's either high nurse-patient ratios or micro-management. Now the question is, why do YOU stay .. and why do you care?

[calivianya, BSN, RN]

My ICU is staffed by RNs with an average experience level of 6 months to a year if that most are just off residency. It is a revolving door of attrition every year for various reasons.

There is a nursing shortage with regard to EXPERIENCE. Its not hard to get a brand new into a hospital role but keeping them is a different story.

Mine is starting to look like this.

My unit had a ton of nurses with 2-5 years of experience when I started, and the occasional new grad was a rare occurrence. Within the past year, a good 8-10 of our 2-5 year nurses have quit and gone elsewhere - and not to NP school, either. We have lost two to CRNA school, but most are going somewhere like dialysis or PACU.

We still have at least five or so 20+ year nurses, and they are very nice and kind, but you can tell they are tired of the BS and choose to remove themselves from it. They refuse to precept new hires and give themselves the easiest patients when they do charge, and usually spend most of the shift reading a book.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Read my lips: Stop believing the lie. There IS NO nursing shortage.