Who else read the article in todays Arizona Repub new grad nurses can't find work

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It was in Todays paper 1-25-09, Business Sunday page D5, kind of depressing, anyone else read this, what are your thoughts?

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So that others might know to what you were referring, I found the link to the story online:

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2009/01/25/20090125biz-nursing0125.html

This is from the Arizona Republic.

Article name: "New Nurses Face Hiring Challenges"

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Thanks

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After reading the article, I don't think it necessarily states that new grads won't find a job, but rather that it will be more difficult in the current economic environment.

The demand is obviously there. It sounds to me like hospitals are simply choosing to overwork their current staff, rather than fill positions that need to be filled. This is unfortunate, because it obviously affects the quality of patient care.

I do not think the current economic downturn will last longer than 3 years. It is my opinion that we have been in this mess for at least 1 1/2 years already. The Great Depression's main years were from October 1929 through the turn in 1933. Contrary to some opinion, we are not in another Great Depression. The unemployment rate is not at 20% like the Great Depression.

Do not allow a news report to discourage you from pursuing your dream. There will be tremendous demand for nursing in the coming years as older nurses retire and as the Baby Boomer generation retires.

Be patient, this too shall pass and opportunities will increase in the coming years. All things considered, I would much rather have a Bachelors in Nursing than a Liberal Arts degree in this economic environment. A person with a skill that is needed can always find employment somewhere. Besides, if you are doing this job ONLY for the money, you are in the wrong line of work. Nurses are certainly not compensated enough for the value of the care that that they provide.

Nurses are a valuable and critical part of any patient's care; therefore, there will always be jobs for good nurses. Don't let the media discourage you from pursuing your dream!

Good luck to everyone!

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Sounds like the writer reads allnurses. Many journalists these days watch boards for story ideas.

Comment: I wouldn't have opened by talking about someone who got a job where he trained though. It makes the story less compelling. The point is that he has a job, not that he didn't get a job at a different hospital. The whole point in doing clinicals and externships is that you will make an impression along the way and find your first job through that process. Or at least that's the way I think coming from a field where networking is important. I expect to have much better luck applying for a job where I'm already known and have had positive feedback rather than sending off resumes to people who don't know anything about me or how I work.

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Given everyone's goal of becoming a nurse, I'm surprised that there hasn't been more reaction to this article.

Does that mean that new grads in your area are not having difficulty finding jobs. Is this problem isolated only to certain areas, such as Arizona? Personally, I think it is an isolated and temporary issue tied to the current economic downturn. I would like to hear other opinions, though.

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It was in Todays paper 1-25-09, Business Sunday page D5, kind of depressing, anyone else read this, what are your thoughts?

My thoughts are that this is a problem that has been grossly under reported. Further, this is a problem that is not limited to AZ. (Check out the MA region board on this website.)

I have not heard anything along these lines at any of the BSN information sessions that I've attended in the last 1.5 years as I've prepared to apply to nursing programs. On some level, it feels as though I was duped.

It's very frustrating to be encouraged to get into this field with the (false?) promise that there is a shortage and you'll have no trouble whatsoever finding work. This is obviously just no longer true.

I'm not saying that it would affect one's decision to pursue a career they love, but they should be presented with accurate and truthful information about job prospects. This way they are capable of making an informed decision.

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This is a big-time problem here in the Philadelphia/South Jersey area. :(

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The area i'm in is having the same issue (Toledo, OH). There are so many nursing schools in the area that there aren't enough jobs to go around. I'm really not interested in moving (my great-grandparents, grandparents, mom, and now me and my son have all lived in the same dinky town so I have some serious roots lol) so i'm hoping in the next three years the job market will change a bit. If I have to move though I have to move. Becoming a nurse (and subsequently a CNM) is top priority at this point.

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hiring freezes in 2 out of 3 of the biggest hospitals in my E. Tennessee area. one of them is a learning hospital.

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Lady Vol, it wont let me PM yet till I have more post. I dont think will allow me to say specific hospital names unless in PM but the area I am referring to is by UTC not UTK if that says anything. I am not sure about your area.

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i find this very interesting, as an article in our local paper says almost the exact opposite:

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/jan/24/bz-health-care-jobs-hardy/

tampa - with the tampa bay area's unemployment rate continuing to surge, a growing number of people appear to be pinning their job hopes on the health care industry.

across the area, health care companies and medical staffing agencies report a significant rise in the number of job applicants, many of whom are attracted by the stability of the health care industry. while almost every industry in the state has been losing jobs recently, health care is a rare exception and has added an estimated 37,200 jobs in the past year, according to figures released friday by the florida agency for workforce innovation.

"we have been inundated for months with candidates who want to get into health care because they see it as stable," said seymie wilkerson, area vice president of staffing agency all medical personnel in tampa. "it's been a very interesting seven to nine months."

on friday, the state released ugly unemployment figures for itself and the tampa bay area. locally, the unemployment rate hit 8.3 percent in december, a jump from 7.9 percent in november and up from 4.7 percent in december 2007. that compares with the state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 8.1 percent and the u.s. jobless rate of 7.2 percent.

almost every industry in florida has been feeling the pain recently. construction, for example, continues to be hammered, losing 15.6 percent of its jobs over the past year, and retailers have shed 5.2 percent of their jobs.

health care, however, continues to hold up relatively well. some hospitals have cut workers here and there, industry officials say; but in most cases, health care companies have flat employment rolls or are selectively hiring. statewide, employment at physicians' offices is up 6.6 percent over the past year, employment at nursing homes is up 3.9 percent and jobs at hospitals are up 2.8 percent.

that has caused many job seekers to flood health care companies with applications, even if there aren't enough jobs to go around.

amy lovett, communications director for baycare health system, which operates health care facilities including the st. joseph's, st. anthony's and morton plant hospital systems, received 121,092 job applications last year. that's up about 55 percent from 2007, when baycare received 78,236 applications. the company attributes the increase to the economy, because it didn't open any additional major facilities in that year, lovett said.

baycare continues to hire, especially for registered nurses and lab technicians. the company's turnover rate among support positions, however, such as information technology, human resources and other noncare providers, is exceptionally low right now because people don't want to risk leaving. so, there are few ancillary jobs available, she said.

among other signs that people are seeking out health care jobs, erwin technical school in tampa reports strong demand for its health education programs, which have about 700 students.

and at maxim staffing solutions, which focuses heavily on nursing, recruiters are seeing continued demand for nurses to work in the bay area's jails and prisons.

in some cases, maxim's clients are cutting back on hiring contract nurses.

"but corrections is not going anywhere. it's been a big niche for us," said maxim accounts manager ryan burd.

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