Will there still be a shortage in the year 2010?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am a prenursing student and with the wait list as long as 2-3 years to get into nursing school, will there still be a demand for nurses by the time I would finish nursing school with an ADN? I am guestimating that by the time I finish my prereq and then get put on the waiting list, and then finish nursing school, at the earliest, would be the year 2010. Will there still be a demand?

Thanks for everyone's input! :)

Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

I believe the shortage varies alot with geographic region. Some parts of the U.S. have more of a shortage than others, with the more desirable places to live having less of a shortage. I just graduated from an ADN program here in northern colorado, and working in LTC:( The local hospitals just don't have that many openings, and for those that they do have, they have many applicants and it is fairly competitive to get hired there. Even the LTC facility that I am working in doesnt have openings. However, northern colorado is a choice place to live, not just by my standards - ft collins was voted one of the 'nicest small cities in america' by some survey.

Also in this area, the local cc has doubled admissions to their nsg program, so there are twice as many nurses in the pipeline, as well as having added an accelerated program. I am just wondering where all theses students are going to get jobs.

I am thinking of relocating to another state, where I hear there is a better selection of jobs. The 'nursing shortage' is all you hear about, I just have yet to really experience it for myself.

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I have read through the entire thread and see valid points on all sides. As a staff development coordinator in an LTC, I can attest to an actual nursing shortage in LTC's and in Western Colorado (The Western Slope). For all the reasons that have been listed, I believe it will continue. I have been in nursing for 40 years and have never seen such a glut of nurses that it was not possible to find a job, or several jobs for that matter. Sometimes the hours are long, and the pay a little less than you might hope for, but all in all it has been, for me, worthwile. If it is possible, I would look for other schooling possibilities that will shorten the lead time to get into a program. Good Luck in your endeavors. Just as Virginia was assured there is a Santa Clause, let me assure you that there will be jobs for you when you graduate.

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I work in a hospital full time, I am a clinical instructor part time for a major university in our city, and I run a lawn mowing buisness, I make about the same teaching nursing as I pay a college student to mow lawns for me. Why do you think there is a shortage of nurses?

People find this hard to beleive, but some areas are saturated with nurses, and wages are very low.

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There will definitely be a nursing shortage still. I can't believe your area has a 2-3 yr wait list.

Christine, RNC, BSN

I'm still a student, and the waiting list is the same where I live. I finally jumped into the lpn program, and will then bridge because I can actually get in quicker this way. 10 more weeks and I graduate from this leg. woohoo!

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Nurses in 2010 or 2020 might not have to worry about finding a job but unless things change they WILL have to worry about paying bills; our DON says (and I agree) the best way to end the nursing shortage is pay a decent wage! You know one that supports a family on one income AND allows savings for retirement!

It's amazing how little pay nurses earn even with a post grad education- and how much we're expected to sacrifice for little or no compensation other than personal and altruistic satisfaction. Management and the insurance industry loves this employee population- so many workers willing to work 'for the love of it,' and those who complain 'love ain't enough' are often berated by their own co-workers!

4ZBirds

not retiring any time soon because I can't afford to!

As Ed McMahon used to say to Johnny Carson: "You are right Sir" (Or Ma'am as the case may be.) I personally don't believe there is a shortage of Nurses in any part of the country, just a shortage of Nurses who are willing to work weekends, holidays, evenings, nights and then have to do overtime because an overworked coworker called in because they couldn't face another double shift. Start Nurses in hospitals at 60 to 70K per year and watch the "shortage" disappear as Nurses stop working at selling real estate or whatever and return to the hospital for a real wage.

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.
People find this hard to beleive, but some areas are saturated with nurses, and wages are very low.

Kinda like where I live.

I am also learning that to get hired - esp by hospitals - it makes a big difference if you have experience or not. I have recently emailed a couple of recruiters of hospitals in neighboring towns inquiring about RN positions and they flat out told me that they are not hiring new grads - even though there are several RN job postings on their websites.

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Yes, the exact reason why there are waiting lists to get in is because not only is there a nursing shortage, but the shortage of nurse instructors is even worse. Why? Because as a new nurse graduate, you are making the same amount as they are. Most nurses, if wanting to go back to school for a masters, are going to select the nursing professions that pay a lot- you can make over 100,000 a year as a nurse anesthetist, for example. The problem with these long waiting lists and the teacher's shortage is making the whole nursing shortage problem worse. It is projected to get worse and worse and worse. There have been charts made about how the shortage is projected to get continuously worse and will be really scary/critical by the year 2020. I have done a lot of research about this and know what I am talking about. We discussed it at length in nursing school. Trust me.

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

I just had to laugh when I saw the title of your post. I went to nursing school in 1973 and there was a nursing shortage then. Nothing has changed and it's 32 years later! Here's the advice I was given many years ago when trying to decide between accounting and nursing: as a nurse you will always find work. How true that is. I have just picked up and moved across the country and sometimes quit a job without thinking about the consequences. I was never out of RN work for longer than 2 weeks unless it was by choice to take an extended vacation. Ha! Ha! It's worth the wait to get into the nursing program, kiddo.

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Daytonite,

Your post is very encouraging! I was starting to get worried when I saw a few posts saying that there is no such shortage, etc.. I recently talked to a friend of mine who has been a nurse for 12 years and she said there would definitely be one because there has always been one.

Thanks again!

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I just had to laugh when I saw the title of your post. I went to nursing school in 1973 and there was a nursing shortage then. Nothing has changed and it's 32 years later! Here's the advice I was given many years ago when trying to decide between accounting and nursing: as a nurse you will always find work. How true that is. I have just picked up and moved across the country and sometimes quit a job without thinking about the consequences. I was never out of RN work for longer than 2 weeks unless it was by choice to take an extended vacation. Ha! Ha! It's worth the wait to get into the nursing program, kiddo.

Hi, I am a CPA candidate. I am taking pre-reqs now, try to get into a nursing program. Is it a good move from accounting to nursing? Maybe in the future I can practice as a CPA and a RN at the same time!

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Hi, I am a CPA candidate. I am taking pre-reqs now, try to get into a nursing program. Is it a good move from accounting to nursing? Maybe in the future I can practice as a CPA and a RN at the same time!
I think it is an excellent move!

As an added bonus, you can keep your employer from messing with your pay!!!

:rotfl:

j/k

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
Hi, I am a CPA candidate. I am taking pre-reqs now, try to get into a nursing program. Is it a good move from accounting to nursing? Maybe in the future I can practice as a CPA and a RN at the same time!

Well, it's definitely a lot more interesting than sitting in an office and looking at and conversing with the same people every day. :chuckle I've recently been exploring the world of Health Information Management which is the new lingo for Medical Records and where medical coding is done (also numbers). While it's not math, it's definitely grounded in logic since we are working with computers and the coding is the basis by which accounts receivable (bills) are generated.

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