A nurse shortage question?

If there is a free market for the skills of new nurses, what can you predict is likely to happen to the wage rate earned by individuals who have just completed their nursing training?

The aging of America insures the short and long term success of all health care workers. Demand for skilled nurses continues to grow and the pay level for these professionals continues to increase. As a new nurse, I believe you have a financially rewarding career to look forward to. Good luck!

In the United States a nursing shortage would seem to bode well for increased salaries for nurses. The variables are immigration of foreign born nurses and license requirements. Even give these variables nursing incomes should rise dramatically as baby boomers age.

The hourly rate for new grads is already higher now than it was 10 years ago. The pay rate varies from state to state and from one facility to another. The east and west coasts pay more but the cost of living is higher. Hospitals and other facilities try to be competitive in this area in order to attract nurses. Long-term care facilities pay the most for LVNs/LPNs but the workload is the heaviest. Hospital nursing for RN grads pays the most for an entry-level nurse. The rate differs for ADNs and BSNs. There are also sign-on bonuses that vary and are generally between $1500 and $5000 depending on the facility and education level and degrees acquired. There is a ceiling to this but I'm not entirely certain it's been reached.

The wage will go up, especially in the short run----and in the long run, but not as much as it would in the short run. As more nurses are needed, companies are much more willing to hire new entrants, and that willingness translates into a higher wage.

But on a graph of supply and demand, you will likely see a spider web caused by the lag between a demand for new nurses and the time it takes for prospective nurses to complete school.

With a nursing shortage, wages rise to the point on the "new" (higher) demand curve at a given quanity of existing nurses. Because of this rise, more nurses enter school, equal to the point on the supply curve at that new wage. When they enter the market, wages depress to the demand curve at the new quanity. This causes some nurses to leave the market until the number is equal to the supply curve at the decreased wage. Now with less nurses, wages begin to increase again and the whole thing starts over.

What results is a diagram that looks something like a spider web beginning from the original equilibrium point and spinning around and slowing coming into the new one.

There are many real-world complications (1) the expectation of this effect, (2) wages which really change more, and (3) social attitudes prompting would-be nurses (particularly women) to become doctors with higher wages and more intangible benefits and ignoring the wage rate of nurses altogether---this being the primary cause of the nursing shortage in the first place. Nonetheless, the end result caused by this "spider web effect" is the same.

Bottom line, wages go up.

Congratulations on completing your training!!!

Supply of Nurses:
Nursing, a social career can be a short-term career. This is because of the social wear and tear upon the workers. Part of the nursing shortage is due to the semi-retired nurses. These are nurses who have taken time off to raise children, or pursuit other career avenues (teaching, administration, sales within medical field). This also balances out with the nurses who need that break to regain their mental and spiritual strength.

Demand for Nurses:
Another factor is weighing out the population who's demanding nursing services. Certainly there's the "Baby-Boomers" who need geriatric care, "Sports" who need traveling nurses, war victims, and "Babies". The demand is rising as fast as the "Baby-Boomers" are aging. Since the "Baby-Boomers" are the largest force to sweep through the American population, demand is increased (to give you better wages).

You would also want to consider how a natural disaster would influence your demand. The "Bird Flu" or other epic flu's may change your demand services terribly (also putting you in peril) ... terrorism may cause a sharp demand for your services, too.

"Your future's so bright --- You got to wear shades"