News Article about "Nursing Shortage!"

Koyaanisqatsi-RN · Feb 16, 2009

Can't wait to hear all the garbage about how there 'really isn't a nursing shortage' :rolleyes:

Yes, we get it. You hate new nurses. You think the schools are just "churning out new grads" (because it was SO different when YOU were in school).

Most of us are aware that the nursing shortage is because of retention issues. But most of those people are not cut out for nursing, regardless of what the hospital does. I may be a new RN student, but I know many nurses, one of whom is my sister, and they do just fine.

Some are ok for the job, some aren't. This is literally the same as it is in every single other profession that exists.

(when I say 'you', I'm not referring to the OP :) )

thmpr · Feb 16, 2009

Yes lets tell her! :lol2: Then we can send her a purdy hair tie..

Do you think this may help new grads:

http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Government/Stimulus.htm

http://www.nursingworld.org/HomepageCategory/NursingInsider/Federal-Stimulus.aspx

nursbee04 · Feb 16, 2009

Can't wait to hear all the garbage about how there 'really isn't a nursing shortage'
Yes, we get it. You hate new nurses. You think the schools are just "churning out new grads" (because it was SO different when YOU were in school).
Most of us are aware that the nursing shortage is because of retention issues. But most of those people are not cut out for nursing, regardless of what the hospital does. I may be a new RN student, but I know many nurses, one of whom is my sister, and they do just fine.
Some are ok for the job, some aren't. This is literally the same as it is in every single other profession that exists.
(when I say 'you', I'm not referring to the OP :) )

I apologize, for this is long. But this post struck a chord in me.

*note: the quoted sentences in my post are not taken directly from anyone's post.

You know, no one would ever look at me where I work (ICU) and question my nursing skills or judgments. The physicians I work with respect my opinion, My nurse manager has said "I don't have to worry when I know you are doing charge." I say this not to make myself sound better (because I have several wonderful coworkers who do just as good of a job), but to prove my point.

There were times (when I was a new nurse, before I switched areas) that I would think to myself - This Is Not Safe. This FACILITY is putting MY license at risk. At one point I left work every morning and cried all the way home. The stress and anxiety made me miserable. And yet every single mentor, nurse manager, coworker was telling me what a good job I was doing. (I was skipping all of my breaks to get my work done. If you have eight patients, five of which are incontinent and turns, three of which get pain meds every four hours and one of which is getting multiple units of blood, you have no nursing aids to help, no charge nurse to help because she takes nine patients too, you kinda loose site of "lunch." The workload was insane. Even the experienced nurses I worked with had a hard time getting out before 8.)

Everyone thought I was doing "just fine." Like many new nurses the above poster mentioned they know.

By July of my 1st year (I graduated in June) They made me charge nurse. And what business does any new grad have being in charge? You can imagine what this did to my stress level. But I plowed through, everyone continued to tell me what a good job I was doing, and I continued to cry all the way home. And I started to have panic attacks. Because it wasn't safe. And the whole time feeling conflicted because I wanted out of a profession that I loved.

Then I switched areas. I went from Medsurg to ICU. And it was like I could BREATHE again. Not because I had no stress (on the contrary, a day in ICU can be VERY stressful.) but because the work load was acceptable.

Now, somehow I don't think you would look at me and say "You're just not cut out for nursing." Because guess what? I am cut out for it. I am darn good at what I do.

Its not as simple as "well, they just weren't cut out for the job." No. We are good nurses, with good skills and gifts to offer this profession, but some of us have standards we refuse to stray from. I expect to be able to practice SAFELY, without putting my license at risk every time I clock in.

Granted, there are people out there who are not cut out for the job. Goodness, I've worked with some of them :uhoh3: But to chalk it up to "Well, they're just not cut out for it. Sink or swim." That's not the attitude to have. We are loosing many GREAT nurses too. You need to be given the tools to build a good foundation before you are expected to hold the entire building up. How can new nurses build that foundation if we don't give them the tools?

RN1982 · Feb 16, 2009

Thats how I felt when I left stepdown for ICU. When I worked stepdown, I was expected to take charge and have 4 patients. I felt like I has having a bronchospasm, then when I switched to SICU, I could breath again. I don't think there is so much a nursing shortage as there is a shortage of nurses willing to put up with the things that we do. I think we are sometimes the most abused profession out there. I don't think we get the credit we deserve.

There were many people who thought I wouldn't make it out my first year of nursing. There were a few senior nurses who tried to cut me down and make me feel incompetent. The first year sucks. But I didn't give up.

jjjoy, LPN · Feb 16, 2009

I agree that while certainly not everyone is "cut out for nursing", the bulk of nursing jobs shouldn't be so challenging that only the best of the best can manage competency at an entry-level job. If we only needed a few nurses, then, fine, pile on the challenges, let it be sink or swim and the best will survive. But we need LOTS of nurses, thus, I think the bulk of nursing jobs should be do-able for the average intelligent, hard-working person with the appropriate training and licensing. If the workload for the average job tends to be overwhelming, the only people who manage to stay at the job over time are supernurses (by definition those who aren't average) or those who are willing to put up with giving less than ideal care (perhaps because they don't think they can afford to change their line of work). Everyone else gets out as soon as possible. I see the biggest problem as whether it can be financially viable to create a more tolerable work environment for the average floor nurse. That means reliable (well-paid, professional) support staff, that means a low nurse to patient ratio, and other costly changes that don't show a direct improvement to the bottom-line.