20 Nursing Crisi facts That Provide Hope

Sometimes life seems unfair. You work hard all day; come home to an active family; can't seem to pay all those bills each month; thought you would be farther along with your life's goals by now; and you feel like you are getting nowhere - just existing. Yes, you have much to be thankful for, but life can feel overwhelming at times.

Work can be a joy, a challenge, bring self-esteem and satisfaction, provide security and afford you a way to make a real difference in this world. That's the way work should be.

Too often though, people get beat down on the job. They leave feeling unappreciated. How often have you asked yourself this question, "Why do I bother?"

Maybe today was such a day. Finally, the work shift came to an end when you realized that there was more to do today. "Oh no," you might have thought, "I have class tonight! I just don't feel like it today and I still have months to go before I finish. Will I ever get it done? Is all this extra effort really worth it?"

You may be sitting down to study for that Microbiology class and wondering the same things. After all, you could be spending this time with your children or watching your favorite show on television.

School is a sacrifice. there is no doubt about it. Sometimes we need encouragement; sometimes we need to be reminded about what is possible, what is at stake, why we decided to do this to begin with.

So bear with me as I share some rather dry facts. Facts that, when you are aware of them and how to gain leverage in the situation, will catapult you out of today's circumstances. Facts that make all your hard work and sacrifice worth it. So here we go...

  1. Over 126,000 nursing positions are unfilled in hospitals.

  2. Nurse shortages are even more acute in long-term care facilities and home-health care agencies.

  3. By 2015, it is estimated the U.S.A. will be short 500,000 nurses.

  4. By 2020, 65% of the population will be 65 or older. It is predicted we will lack 700,000 nurses to care for them.

  5. The need for healthcare workers will triple by 2050.

  6. The average age of the nurse today is 46.

  7. Of the 2.7 million RNs in this country, 83% are employed in nursing

  8. 30% of nurses under the age of 30 plan to leave their jobs within the next year.

  9. 41% of nurses are dissatisfied with their current jobs, mostly due to poor staffing ratios.

10. Surveys prove nurses would prefer more help to more pay.

11. Hospitals offer free sign-on bonuses from $5,000 to $15,000 to a new Volkswagen Beetle!

12. Thousands of hospital deaths every year can be blamed on a nationwide nurse shortage, according to JCAH (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.)

13. Nursing staffing issues account for 50% of ventilator-related deaths, 42% of surgery-related deaths, 25% of transfusion errors, 19% of medicine errors, 14% of patient falls, and 14% of patient suicides.

14. For every patient over four that a nurse has to care for, patients face a 7% greater risk of dying.

15. Nationwide there is one school nurse for every 3521 students. Meanwhile, the incident of asthma and juvenile diabetes continue to climb.

16. Nursing shortages are plaguing most cities, large and small, not only in the USA, but worldwide.

17. Hospital units, and some entire hospitals, are closing, not for lack of rooms, but lack of nurses.

18. Emergency rooms throughout the country are often on "divert-status" daily, refusing to accept the patient in the ambulance due to lack of personnel in the ER.

19. Hospitals are forcing mandatory overtime to meet the patient-care loads. Nurses feel exhausted, overworked, and under-appreciated.

20. This shortage is a worldwide problem. Hospitals are recruiting nurses from foreign countries. While these incentives serve to fill our need, it leaves destitute countries with even fewer nurses.

You can click the link above to read the 16-page report. In that article, I discussed how every crisis presents us with overwhelming opportunities - if we recognize and take advantage of them.

Just recently, the stock market tumbled dramatically. We witnessed some of the largest losses since the great depression. People panicked, including the governments of the world. Our own government dedicated $70 billion to the "crisis".

Did you ever wonder who benefits? The answer is simple - the people who recognized the opportunity and acted. While most people were raiding their bank accounts and trying to "protect" their money, Warren Buffet invested billions of dollars because he saw the opportunity. He knows that stock prices are at all-time lows and that they will bonce back up. It's a lesson from history he learned well. Not only will he become richer than ever, but he was able to use his money with leverage - he controls most of the companies he bought stock in.

You may be wondering how this applies to you? The answer is simple - you have every reason to be optomistic about tomorrow. By obtaining your RN degree, you will have the leverage to change your life circumstances. Let me point out some of the things you should be looking forward to:

Pay Raise: According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average RN in our area earns over $20,000 per year more than the average LPN. If you are a paramedic, the average pay increase is $25,000.

Job Security: Employers are so short staffed that they bend over backwards to keep their RNs happy. Even if you lost a job, other employers are clamoring for your services. The demand is so great that they are even paying...

Sign-on Bonuses: These bonuses amount to thousands of dollars. Last year, one of my students told me about a friend who was given a new SUV as a sign-on bonus.

Flexibility: You can work the shifts you want. No longer are terrible hours thrust upon you.

Options: Many companies hire RNs, not just hospitals and nursing homes.

Respect: Although you will be the same person, the world will be looking at you with a new-found respect after you add the letters "RN" after your name. This includes patients, employers and the community in general.

Authority: You will finally be in a position where you are the responsible party. Others will look to you for decisions and guidance.

Time: You will have the time you need to spend with your loved one's. This is especially true if you've been working multiple jobs to make ends meet. Now, you won't have to. Will that change things with your spouse or children - you bet.

Financial Freedom: With a little discipline, you now will have the means to pay down those debts and begin investing in yourself and your family.

I encourage you to look past today. You have made a tremendous decision to change tomorrow. The sacrifices of today, the hard work, the missed time with the family, etc. will pay off. Keep the vision before you. See what you are becoming. Tomorrow is yours...