Nation Faces Nursing Shortage

NATION FACES NURSING SHORTAGE

Nurses do more than care for people. Ever since Florence Nightingale led the effort to improve hospital sanitation and became known as the founder of modern day nursing, nurses have been at the forefront of change in health care and public health.

Nurses provide ongoing assessment of patient's health. Their round-the-clock presence, observation, skills, and vigilance allow doctors to make better diagnoses and develop proper treatments. Many lives have undoubtedly been saved by an attentive nurse who saw early warning signs of an impending cardiac arrest or some other crisis.

Given the importance of nurses to the health of Americans, it is unfortunate, indeed, that the nation is facing a critical nursing shortage. There is a sense of urgency about the shortage this year as the first wave of baby boomers begins turning 60. As the country ages it means Registered Nurses will play an even larger role as the 78 million baby boomers require additional health services.

America's demand for new and replacement Registered Nurses is expected to increase 29 percent by the year 2014 in order to accommodate growing patient needs and to replace retiring nurses. The American College of Healthcare Executives has statistics that state 72 percent of hospitals nationwide reported a shortage of RN's in 2004 which puts the lives of patients at risk.

To keep the shortage from reaching crisis proportions I have become part of an effort to educate more nurses to handle future responsibilities. I have signed a letter calling on members of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee to provide $175 million for Title VIII Nursing Education and Workforce development programs. The letter states that current funding levels fail to meet the rising need for Registered Nurses, especially when coupled with cuts to other programs.

Due to the lack of funding, the Health Resources and Services Administration has turned away 82 percent of applicants for the Nurse Education Loan Repayment Program and 98 percent of applicants for the Nursing Scholarship Program in the last fiscal year.

Most health professionals agree that something must be done. I have been contacted directly by the deans of nursing schools at Nebraska Methodist, Creighton, and the University of Nebraska Medical Center asking for help in funding education programs to address the nursing shortage.

The nursing situation in Nebraska is better than most other states, but there is still room for improvement. With more than 20,000 Registered Nurses, Nebraska has nearly 11-hundred nurses per 100,000 population which ranks us at 8th highest in the U.S. Unfortunately, the national average is only 825 per 100,000 population.

Registered Nurses are the primary source of care and support for patients at the most vulnerable points in their lives. Nearly every person's health care experience involves a Registered Nurse at some point in time. The scarcity of RN's has put the lives of patients at risk and will do so in ever increasing numbers as the population ages if we don't act quickly.

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