Nursing shortage, or time for a raise?

i hear all about the shortage of nurses, actually i've been hearing about it for years. why don't hospitals just pay nurses more? that would attract more nurses and within a brief period most jobs would be filled and the shortage would be over. isn't this simple economics? if hospitals tried to hire doctors for $20 per hour and didn't fill open positions they wouldn't call it a shortage.

to the people that said there aren't enough teachers for nurses, isn't that a different shortage? and couldn't these people be paid more too? if nurses and nurse teachers were paid $200,000 per year wouldn't this problem go away?

If you check into this situation, the shortage is starting with the nursing school teachers. They can make more money by staying in the field. Along with the shortage of instructors, the schools are very full and turnover in the programs is high; as students drop out. Some schools have raised their entrance standards in my area and this has hurt too. Also, some of the people that would have applied to the nursing program have chosen other careers in the medical field since there are so many choices now.

Some nurses are lured away by insurance companies and private businesses, and they can make quite a bit more too. Look at the whole Workers Comp industry. They use case nurses to monitor the progress of their patients.

Yes, I agree that there appears to be a shortage in the nursing field. But it is not entirely related to the amount of pay. There are several factors involved that must be looked at; staring first with the instructors.

If you look at some of the other medical related careers that are in high demand, you will find the same scenario steaming back to the instructors- there just are not enough.

Also look at the insurance issue- I'm sure that if you mentioned this to medical personnel, they would agree that with the sue happy society we live in, this is always a concern.

Good Luck.

I think it is just a nursing shortage...I'm not an expert, but I've always thought nurses got paid pretty well and their schedules (12 hour rotating) was fair.

Someone told me the bottleneck is actually a shortage of nursing schools. Don't know if it's true or not.

If only it were that simple. The demand is high, so there is a lot of transfering and chasing the "better money." Due to the demand, there are not enough instructors to teach new students to become nurses. There is also a lot of burnout due to high stress and long hours.

when I graduated university nursing school there was a surplus of nurses - the uni advised us all that there was a shortage coming in a few years.

So, now we are a few years later - we have a major shortage in Australia. We are not paid badly but not well either considered what we do.

I think in the days prior to univsersity training and when on the job training occurred it was easier to use students to fill the gaps - the gov could afford this as they were cheap labour. RN salaries cost the Gov alot of money in an already stretched budget.

Sadly - you cant attract bees without a honey pot

Where I work, there isn't a shortage of nurses, there is a problem with money and hospitals in the area are losing it at a fast and alarming rate. They have to cut corners in every area possible, and that means nurses, housekeepers, phlebotomists, etc. Its scarey, because the staffing is as minimal as it can get, so they can save money, but at the same time, its not always safe staffing. Nurses get overworked, burnt out, and quit after a short period, leaving even bigger staffing gaps. The problem is that the hospitals in this area cannot refuse a person because they dont have insurance or money to pay, and medicare and medicaide do not reimburse the hospital enough for the expenses from these people. Health care is a huge mess in the US....and its not going to get any better!

The pay rate for nurses is pretty much at the bottom of the grievence list. Nurses really don't get the appreciation and respect that they deserve. People don't really understand that when you're in the hospital your life depends on your nurse. He/she is responsible for making sure your medications are right, they check the doctors orders to make sure there are no mistakes (trust me there are many), they are watching for slight changes in your condition that can lead to serious complications if left unreported. Patient load is pretty much rediculous in many hospitals. It's very challenging to be in charge of 6 or more patients for 12 hours. While benifits and wage are not the greatest I think that the burnout rate is what really needs work. We lose some of our most experienced RN's because they are treated like drones and have no authority over a patients treatment. I have had personal accounts of a nurse saving someones life because they fought with the doctor long and hard enough to get a test ordered, or to get a procedure approved. It's important to respect this position.... Nursing as a career requires a big heart, intelligence, advocacy, and the ability to be in the background... it's not easy. Great question!

There is not enough funding to pay for nursing instructors well enough to retain them. If you are upset about this write your congress men and complain to help out schools

nursing is such a hard career and a sensitvite one too. they just cant anyone take care of other people. our colleges are actually processing though millions to find the best of the best and this is why we have a shortage. as soon as they get thru schooling and all those test then there should be an increase of nurses. i dont think it has nothing to do with raises and the way nurses are paid.

the main problem is job burnout brought about by stress. this stress is caused by the fact that most doctors are egotistical pricks.