The debate in Washington continues to rage with regards to President Obama's Proposal for Healthcare Reform. Although the sides remain divided, there is a strong push toward accepting the proposal now without further debate. Clearly this is a hot button issue that affects every American, but the impact of healthcare reform is substantial for the healthcare professional.

President Obama's plan deals heavily with the idea that middle-income earners who would normally not qualify for health care should receive benefits they can afford. He proposes a middle class tax cut that will allow those who could not afford health care premiums to obtain care. His proposal will also assist those who have small businesses, as it is often small businesses owners who forgo even the most basic of health care. In a country like the United States, those without health care often become seriously ill or even die because they cannot afford the cost of a doctor's visit.

Based on President Obama's plan, once these individuals have access to good health care, the medical community will need to be staffed adequately to provide that care. The Act will add more primary care providers across the Country, focusing on those areas where assistance is underprovided right now.

A specific focus of the Healthcare Reform Plan is on the current and projected Nursing Shortage. A huge problem for the United States, the medical community is bracing for a nursing shortage as the baby boomers begin their retirement. The current intake into US based nursing programs is not meeting the demand in medical care facilities. The Act will increase the amount of nurses in the United States, and assist in nurse retention by eliminating financial barriers that are preventing both registered nurses and nurse faculty from achieving their goals. In addition, the Act puts into place grants for nursing schools to both improve and retain nurses. Student loans will be increased, as will a nurse's eligibility for scholarships and loan repayments if they choose to become faculty.

President Obama's plan goes beyond the increased support of nurses in the United States. At the most basic level, the Act will assist students in public school programs to prepare for careers in health and medical. According to the plan, if health professionals support health sciences in the schools, it is far more likely that these students will enroll in post secondary medical programs such as nursing.

The President's Healthcare Reform Proposal is said to put the individual in the driver's seat as far as their health care options. As President Obama recently stated, "We have debated health care in Washington for more than a year. When's the right time? If not now, when? If not us, who?" Although there are challenges to passing such an Act, the issues of providing medical care to all who need it as well as the added benefit of combating the growing nursing shortage will far outweigh any detriments that may arise to changing the system.

Labels: Government, Health Insurance, Healthcare, Nurse Internship, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Nursing Scholarships, Nursing School, Obama, Universal Healthcare

The debate in Washington continues to rage with regards to President Obama's Proposal for Healthcare Reform. Although the sides remain divided, there is a strong push toward accepting the proposal now without further debate. Clearly this is a hot button issue that affects every American, but the impact of healthcare reform is substantial for the healthcare professional.

President Obama's plan deals heavily with the idea that middle-income earners who would normally not qualify for health care should receive benefits they can afford. He proposes a middle class tax cut that will allow those who could not afford health care premiums to obtain care. His proposal will also assist those who have small businesses, as it is often small businesses owners who forgo even the most basic of health care. In a country like the United States, those without health care often become seriously ill or even die because they cannot afford the cost of a doctor's visit.

Based on President Obama's plan, once these individuals have access to good health care, the medical community will need to be staffed adequately to provide that care. The Act will add more primary care providers across the Country, focusing on those areas where assistance is underprovided right now.

A specific focus of the Healthcare Reform Plan is on the current and projected Nursing Shortage. A huge problem for the United States, the medical community is bracing for a nursing shortage as the baby boomers begin their retirement. The current intake into US based nursing programs is not meeting the demand in medical care facilities. The Act will increase the amount of nurses in the United States, and assist in nurse retention by eliminating financial barriers that are preventing both registered nurses and nurse educators from achieving their goals. In addition, the Act puts into place grants for nursing schools to both improve and retain nurses. Student loans will be increased, as will a nurse's eligibility for scholarships and loan repayments if they choose to become faculty.

President Obama's plan goes beyond the increased support of nurses in the United States. At the most basic level, the Act will assist students in public school programs to prepare for careers in health and medical. According to the plan, if health professionals support health sciences in the schools, it is far more likely that these students will enroll in post secondary medical programs such as nursing.

The President's Healthcare Reform Proposal is said to put the individual in the driver's seat as far as their health care options. As President Obama recently stated, "We have debated health care in Washington for more than a year. When's the right time? If not now, when? If not us, who?" Although there are challenges to passing such an Act, the issues of providing medical care to all who need it as well as the added benefit of combating the growing nursing shortage will far outweigh any detriments that may arise to changing the system.

Labels: Health Insurance, Healthcare, Nurse Educator, Nursing Career, Obama, Public Option, Universal Healthcare

The one thing that most people count on when entering a hospital is that there are going to be nurses to take care of them. Yes, we do see a doctor when we are there, but doctors come and go intermittently. Nurses are the people we rely on. They check us into the hospital, take our vitals, and ensure we are comfortable while we are there. Imagine walking into a hospital and discovering that there are only 2 nurses for an entire floor. This is a reality that the nursing community is preparing for, as the predicted nursing shortage is looming whether the USA is prepared or not.

There are many factors that have caused alarm within the nursing profession and have resulted in the prediction of a massive shortage of nurses by the year 2020. Nursing enrollment in Universities is not growing fast enough, and there is a severe shortage of faculty to teach those already enrolled. As learning institutions require an adequate nursing degree teaching staff to be in place prior to accepting students for enrollment, there has been a lower acceptance rate for those applying.

Nursing has maintained it's popularity as a career since the 1950's, but there has a been a decline over the years from the height of the baby boomers entrance into the profession. As these individuals grow older and move into retirement, there are fewer younger nurses to fill their shoes. Without a steady influx of students into the schools, the numbers of nurses leaving the profession cannot balance out with the number of students entering. As well, the nurses who are currently working in the profession have a high rate of burnout, which results in them leaving earlier than retirement ages.

The bottom line is that a lower nurse to patient ratio means that more people will be inadequately cared for and perhaps even die in emergency situations. The main strategies that are being put into place focus on education. The recently introduced NEED Act for example, will access Capital Grants to expand nursing school faulty and enrollment. Nursing schools are seeking partnerships with private sector companies in order to boost funds to create enrollment and offset the costs of running the programs. On a statewide level, Governments are looking for private sector funds to match the amount that the state can invest in nursing programs. A Nursing Education Capacity Summit took place in February of 2009, and health leaders from 47 states came together to rewrite policy on nursing education, retaining faculty, and curriculum.

It is truly frightening to think of what could possibly happen within our health care system if the current policy makers and educational institutions cannot come up with ways to combat the rising nursing shortage. Nurses are the backbone of our health care system, and without an adequate number of them in hospitals, care homes, and public health units, our growing population will suffer.

Labels: Healthcare, Nurse Educator, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Nursing Shortage, Recruit Nurses

Nursing school graduates face a sparse job market in California despite projections for a massive nursing shortage in the state.

Before the recession brand new nurses could find jobs wherever they wanted in California even in tough job markets like the Bay area.

Back in 2004 state labor affairs officials estimated that California would need at least 9,000 new nurses a year.

But over the past 18 months thousands of graduating nurses have found it almost impossible to land a job.

Many hospitals have set hiring freezes and closed down clinical services. In addition, a lot of nurses that were expected to retire have not chosen to do so. Many have decided that because of the recession they were no longer in a financial position to retire, or perhaps their spouse lost a job and they needed to remain employed.

So a lot of reasons are related to the economy is why we have this temporary lift is what we still believe is a long term shortage of nurses.

Most economists agree that as soon as the economy turns around nurses will again begin retiring and there will be jobs for all of this year's 10,000+ graduates and many more.

In the meantime though, professionals in the healthcare field are taking action to keep trained nurses in California by either encouraging continuing education with an RN to MSN degree or by offering hands-on clinical training so they can compete with experienced nurses for roles that do open up.

Deloras Jones, president and executive director of the California Institute for Nursing & Health Care worries that this economic blip could threaten statewide efforts to build a stable long term nursing workforce. "We're concerned about nurses leaving, going to other states definitely or worse, leaving nursing altogether and going into some other field. The longer they're away from school they are at greater risk of losing what they have learned and that's why it would make it more difficult for them to be employed."

Relief for New RN's looking for work
Even where there are jobs available, hospitals would rather hire an experienced nurse over a new graduate.

New RN's can't expect to immediately graduate and go onto the floor and handle very complex medical patients. There needs to be an opportunity for those nurses to be mentored by experienced nurses and give them time to really get their clinical expertise up to a level that many hospitals need.

Graduates must also learn to be open to job opportunities outside of their first choice markets and might consider getting jobs out of state.

To help nurses wade through the recession, the California Institute for Nursing & Health Care is sponsoring community based programs that give new grads an opportunity to work in the field and pick up some of the skills they would normally get in an entry level nursing job. One of those new programs is a partnership between Kaiser Permanente in Northern California and Samuel Merritt University in Oakland.

Graduating students who pass their RN exams are placed with nurse precepts and Kaiser hospitals. This program is offering them a structured clinical practice environment which includes classes and also time in a clinical setting so they can gain a deeper understanding of the healthcare environment in which nurses work.
The free 15 week program is the first of its kind in the nation. It expects to turn out 250 trainees this year and the CINH hopes to get funding to train another 1300 nurses.

Now is the time for continuing education
Some nursing schools are encouraging graduates to ride out the recession by continuing their education. UC-San Francisco School of Nursing as a 1-year RN program, but many students are opting to stay on.

Said Dean Kathleen Dracup, "About half our graduates used to leave an work for a couple of years as a nurse just to get that experience and then come back for their masters, and now they’re all just going straight through. With the idea that by the time they get their masters which is a two to three year program, then they will be ready."

Labels: Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Nursing Scholarships, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage, Recruit Nurses

Since 1980, the Foundation has given hope, strength and joy to children with life-threatening medical conditions. The Foundation aims to reflect the life-changing impact that a Make-A-Wish experience has on children, families, referral sources, donors, sponsors, and entire communities.

Since its humble beginning in granting a little boy's wish who dreams of becoming a police officer, the Make-a-Wish Foundation has grown into an organization that grants a wish of a child every 40 minutes. The organization has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon, reaching more than 174,000 children around the world. A network of nearly 25,000 volunteers enables the Make-A-Wish Foundation to serve children with life-threatening medical conditions. Volunteers serve as wish granters, fundraisers, special events assistants and numerous other capacities.

The Foundation offers a volunteer position for every time and talent. Volunteers have a wide variety of options to get involved that match their interests and skills. Volunteer opportunities and availability vary by local chapter. All volunteers are required to complete the volunteer screening process. They must also undergo background check.

Nurses and healthcare workers volunteer their time and talent to help grant a sick child's wish and turn it to reality. Many trained nurses that have earned their certification through an online nursing degree or through campus education look forward to this type of opportunity outside of their regular working hours.

Volunteer nurses, along with doctors, parents and other healthcare workers, refer eligible patients between 2 1/2 and 18 who have not received a wish from another wish-granting organization. They gather information on the child's one true wish. Driven by the child's creativity, they then create an unforgettable experience to enrich the lives of the children and their families, but more often an entire community.

Nurses and doctors as well as other healthcare workers see a lot of benefits in volunteering at Make-A-Wish Foundation. They learn and develop certain skills while teaching others the skills they know. Volunteers also gain work experience; thus, enhancing their resume. Volunteering also creates important network contacts as one meets new people and talk to them about their ambitions, enthusiasm, and care for the community.

One of the nursing organizations who volunteer for the foundation is the Oklahoma Nurses Association (ONA). ONA is a professional organization for all registered nurses in Oklahoma that promotes nursing profession. They help the children with critical medical conditions make their wishes come true. They volunteer, sponsor a wish, and organize special events for the children.

Volunteering also develops the self-confidence and self-esteem of both the patient and the healthcare worker. This helps improve the health situation of the patient. More importantly, volunteers make a big difference in the life of the patients, their families and the community.

Labels: Career Profiles, Charity, Hospice Nurse, Medicare, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Volunteer

People now have longer lives compared to generations ago. The explosion of the baby population will need vast medical care but nurses are insufficient

The scarcity of nurses may have a negative effect on medical care. It means an increase to the ratio of the number of patients per nurse, resulting to less attention to each patient. There will be fewer nurses to monitor the patient's vital signs and administer necessary medications. Nurses also offer a human face to a cold and sterile environment.

Based on a study on nursing made by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), there were 1,891,000 full-time equivalent licensed nurses on year 2000 but there was a demand for them to nearly 2,001,500. By 2020, it was seen that there will be less FTE nurses at an estimate of 1,808,000, yet the need increases to 2,824,900. It is estimated that the country could lack nurses close to 500,000 or even 1 million. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) made a similar projection in April 2006. In a report entitled "What is Behind HRSA's Projected Supply, Demand, and Shortage of Registered Nurses?" analysts show that shortage of nurses in varying degrees will be experienced by all 50 states.

Statistics also confirmed that the number of nursing school graduates has declined significantly. The Council on Physician and Nurse Supply, an independent group of health care leaders based on University of Pennsylvania, released a statement last March 2008. They concluded that that to meet the needs of the nation's health care, there should be 30,000 additional nurses to graduate annually either from traditional campus colleges or online nursing programs. This is a 30% increase compared to the present number of annual nurse graduates.

Additionally, fewer nurses choose to teach due to low income, which also affects the figure of new nurses. More nurses prefer to work for pharmaceutical companies because they offer higher salary than hospitals, clinics, emergency rooms, and other health care facilities.

Salaries and wages vary, depending on your location and specialization. To give you an idea, we listed below the median of annual salary figures from CBSalary.com.

• Registered nurse: $66,427
• Intensive care unit (ICU) nurse: $67,548
• Head nurse: $85,967
• Critical care unit (CCU) nurse: $67,016
• Nurse midwife: $98,008
• Home-care nurse: $65,507

Just like other professions, the nursing job is not for everyone. But if it appeals to you, this could be the right moment to take a look into it. The call for nurses will continue to increase in the coming years, so you will definitely be in demand.

Labels: Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage, Nursing Student, Online Degree

There are many, many people with stressful jobs, but it is difficult to compare a Corporate CEO's stress with that of a Registered Nurse. Yes, the stress is different, as one deals with money and the other deals with life and death. The real contrast? That CEO may need the assistance of the nurse to save his life at some point in the future, whereas the nurse will never have the same sort of need for the CEO. Yes, our nurses are vital to our well being. They hold our hands through procedures, they assist in the delivering of our babies, and they take over completely in lieu of a doctor's presence. Unfortunately for the CEO, and for many patients in hospitals right now, nurses are pulled in so many different directions that it has become impossible for them to keep up. Job stress, long hours, and unmanageable constraints on their time have resulted in a major nursing shortage and a high turnover rate. A complete restructuring of the nursing profession is long overdue. It is obvious that the RN career path must change, and Transforming Care at the Bedside is the solution.

Transforming Care at the Bedside (TCAB) is attempting to change the current state of nursing today. TCAB is a three-year training program that will be undertaken by nurses around the country. Through training and support, RNs will focus more time on their patients and work to maintain job satisfaction over a long period of time.

The nursing shortage has reached critical levels due to many factors. The aging population of nurses is larger than the influx of new recruits, as the inhibiting costs and high enrollment rates in schools outweighs the ability to take in students interested in earning their nursing degree. Once on the job, long hours and an overwhelming work load can take its toll. TCAB began as an initial brainstorming project in a medical-surgical unit. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the goal was to find and implement different ways for nurses to do their jobs. The eventual hope was that the unit could increase job satisfaction to the point that there would not be such a high turn over rate. What began in 2003 as an initial one-unit project has expanded to over 200 units across the USA.

TCAB uses a multi-tiered approach to finding new and innovative solutions in health care. Taking ideas from nurses, educators, and administrators, TCAB's focus is on change. Rapid test cycles, discussions as to what works and what doesn't, and involving the entire staff is what creates a new work environment.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant of $732,000 funds the initial changes, and allows for the freedom of implementing new policies and procedures in hospitals. A massive retraining and overhaul would cost a great deal of money to each individual hospital, and the grant puts much-needed funds to good work. Nurses that are currently in residence are retrained and encouraged to voice their opinions. New recruits are then given tools and information to begin their career as a nurse, learning to do things the new way and not fall into old traps.

TCAB may be the key to turning the current nursing shortage around and providing all RNs with a better work environment. It is the hope that a patient focused approach will increase the satisfaction of both the nurse and the patient.

Labels: In the Hospital, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Patient Advocate, Recruit Nurses

An individual who wants to pursue a nursing degree should make a thorough research about the school he wants to go to. When selecting a nursing school, one should consider his goals, the type of nursing career he wants to practice, and school accreditation.

To better help you in choosing the right nursing school, we listed the top 10 nursing schools according to U.S. News & World Report. The ranking is based on several criteria including students' standardized test scores, tuition fees, faculty resources, graduation rates and alumni donation rates.

1. University of Washington

Since 1984, the U.S. News and World Report ranked the University of Washington as the top undergraduate nursing school in the country due to its experiences and renowned faculty, as well as the opportunities for research and community partnerships.

2. University of California-San Francisco

The University of California San Francisco is one of the top undergraduate Online Nursing Programs in the US because of the amount of research funding it receives, the diversity of their programs and the large number of specialty areas it offers. The UCSF School of Nursing adheres to the four primary goals of nursing education: teaching, research, patient care and public service, which enables them to remain at the forefront of nursing education.

3. University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is ranked third among the top undergraduate nursing program because of its long history of excellence in education. Their School of Nursing offers technologically advanced approach to learning specializing in biobehaviorial and health sciences as well as family and community health.

4. Johns Hopkins University - Baltimore, MD

Located in Baltimore, MD, the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing (JHUSON) is one of the nation's oldest and pre-eminent schools for nursing education in the country. The Johns Hopkins School of Nursing aims to provide leadership to improve health care and advance the nursing profession through education, research, practice, and service. JHUSON is also one of the recipients of research funding in nursing from the National Institutes of Health.

5. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Founded in 1817, the University of Michigan - School of Nursing in Ann Arbor, MI is the state’s oldest university. It is one of the original eight schools known as the Public Ivy.

6. University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill (School of Nursing)

The University of North Carolina - School of Nursing located in Chapel Hill, NC claims to be the oldest public university in the US. It is also one of the original eight schools known as the Public Ivy.

7. Oregon Health and Science University

Formed in 1974, the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public university that combines state dentistry, medicine, and nursing programs into a single center.

8. University of Illinois - Chicago

The University of Illinois - Chicago (UIC) is the largest university in the Chicago area. UIC is the second member of the University of Illinois system serving approximately 25,000 students within 15 colleges, including the nation's largest medical school.

9. University of Maryland - Baltimore

The University of Maryland - School of Nursing was founded in 1889 by Nightingale Fund graduate Louisa Parsons. It is known for innovative educational programs that address urgent health care needs nationally and internationally.

10. University of Pittsburgh - Main Campus

Founded on April 6, 1939, the University of Pittsburgh - School of Nursing in Pittsburgh, PA educates nurses for the increasing demanding environment through comprehensive curriculum combining rigorous academic work, intensive clinical experiences, and research.

Labels: Nursing Career, Nursing School, Nursing Student, Online Nursing Degree

The word Swine Flu, or H1N1: Mention the name and you will strike fear in the hearts of people around the world. More frightening to some than the worldwide recession, H1N1 is known to be quick to spread, is extremely contagious, and on occasion, deadly in otherwise healthy individuals. In the midst of vaccines being distributed and panic over a vaccination shortage, many are asking themselves whether or not they should get the shot at all. One thing is for certain; it's difficult to find straight answers unless you look in the right places.

If there is a flu shot available each year, why is the H1N1 vaccine so controversial? For one, the regular flu is not considered to be a pandemic. Although thousands of people are said to die from the regular strains of flu each year, there are many more dying from H1N1. When an illness strikes the general public as hard as this one has, controversy and speculation run rampant.

Vaccinations are a hot subject to begin with, but few have met with the resistance that has the H1N1 vaccine has. Medical experts state that it is similar to the regular flu shot in that it was created the same way, but it has come under fire due to the quick production of vaccine. Conspiracy theories have run rampant, and if you look Swine Flu Vaccines up on the Internet you will find people discussing outlandish tales as to how the government is trying to kill off the weak and those with medical conditions in order to ramp up for the new health care programs. Misinformation has bred hysteria.

One of the reasons that there is such a level of anxiousness with regard to this vaccine is that until H1N1, the Government has always charged the general public for a regular flu shot. Due to the spread and higher rate of complications, this vaccine is offered for free. Yet another reason is that the elderly have always been the focus on the flu shot, whereas the H1N1 vaccine is being given to the young as a high priority group.

Is this vaccine for you? The Government is urging people, especially those in high-risk categories, to get the vaccination. There are many though, who are passing this vaccine by in favor of taking their chances with the disease. To make an informed decision, you must do your own research. Visit reputable web sites, not blogs or sites posting people's opinions. Sites such as the Mayo clinic and your local Public Health portals will give you the most up to date and accurate information. Ask your doctor or registered nurse for advice. Up until recently, some doctors were on the fence as to whether the shot was necessary. As the vaccine has become available, most are urging their patients to get the shot.

The bottom line is this: Young, healthy people have died from H1N1. Not all of these people, children included, have had underlying conditions that would make them susceptible. It is difficult to know how hard H1N1 will hit you, as the majority of cases have been mild. Only you can make the decision as to which risk is greater: the Vaccination or the Swine Flu itself?

Labels: Flu, H1N1, Healthcare, Healthcare Advocate, In the Hospital, Nursing Career, Patient Advocate, Vaccine

The Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida is a non-profit organization devoted to the recognition of excellent nursing in the area. The group achieves this goal through the organization of scholarships, the honoring of local nurses, and the recruitment and support of Floridian nurses.

The Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida got its start in 2000 due to actions by a coalition of nursing organizations led by District 2 of the Florida Nurses Association. They created the first gala event, raising more than $30,000 with the help of community sponsors.

Since 2000, the Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida have put on 5 gala events in celebration of fabulous nurses. Nominations are taken from professional health care workers, patients and their families and community members in order to decide who exceeds expectations through their dedication to excellence at work and desire for further knowledge outside of work via online nursing programs or traditional college. These winners are selected by a panel of nursing peers. The gala events, which are sponsored by businesses and private donors from the community, reward these nurses for their honorable service with good food, awesome entertainment and lots of fun.

In response to the growing health care debt, the Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida uses these gala events to additionally find support from the community for a number of nursing scholarships. A 501(c)(3) organization, the Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida awards scholarships and grants to health care research projects.

The Great 100 Nurses of Northeast Florida is an awesome resource for health care professionals in the Northeastern Floridian area because they keep a Speakers Bureau of Registered Nurses, Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Administrators on hand, available to speak to groups in the area.

The concept of Northeast Florida's Great 100 Nurses is nothing new. In 1998, a registered nurse in North Carolina named Heather Thorne began devising plans for a group that would recognize nursing excellence while bringing more nurses into the fold through scholarships. Since the North Carolinian chapter was founded the group has raised over $140,000 in scholarships.

The Louisiana Great 100 Nurses is also one of the older Great 100 programs. Currently celebrating their twentieth anniversary, health care professionals, patients, families and community members make their nominations with essays applauding the nurses' accomplishments. Similar to the other Great 100 programs, the money from this incredible anniversary celebration will go towards promoting nursing and increasing the amount of money awarded to scholarship recipients.

Iowa's program is among the newer of the Great 100 programs. Founded in 2005 by the Iowa Nurses Foundation, all 99 Iowa counties participate in nominating and awarding nurses with this honor. The 100 Great Iowa Nurses and Iowa Nurses Foundation also support nurses by awarding scholarships that range between $500 and $1500. This is paying off in the University of Iowa Hospitals, as those awarded this honor represented 18 University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics at the five year anniversary of the program, that was held in Des Moines in May.

Labels: Nursing Career, Nursing Scholarships, Nursing School, Online Nursing Degree, Recruit Nurses, Stimulus

Renal disease is one of the biggest diseases on the rise in America today. End stage kidney disease is expected to quadruple from affecting 500,000 people today to at least 2,000,000 by 2030. Effective kidney-knowledgeable nursing can help to counteract this statistic. Kidney nurses, who specialize in renal conditions, are one of the best guards against increasing numbers of patients in renal failure.

Kidney nurses are known by several titles. Referred to as urology nurses, nephrology nurses, renal nurses and dialysis nurses, these nurse cover any number of conditions, but typically work with dialysis. Dialysis nurses undergo certification in order to use dialysis equipment, which filters urine for patients who's kidneys have stopped functioning correctly.

Salaries average at about $60,000 a year, but can vary depending on a number of factors. Some districts pay as low as the mid $50,000s, and some pay more than $70,000 a year. Certification, Bachelors degrees and experience can lead to even higher salaries. Dialysis nursing is not a common certification, which means that there are many positions open. With low supply and high demand, dialysis nurses have more opportunities for positions than do other nurses.

Regarding education, renal nurses require advanced degrees and training to gain certification. You can start with a online nursing degree from any accredited program, from an Associate degree to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Nurses with higher education are generally paid more than those with the minimum amount and are more likely to be hired. Once you complete your schooling, you can study advanced diseases of the kidneys. There are plenty of programs that you could attend in order to get the information you need. Then, take your state's Certified Dialysis Nurse Examination. After you pass, you'll have the certification you need to operate a dialysis machine.

Nurses that have patients that have undergone renal transplant surgery have more responsibilities beyond standard care for post-surgery recovery. Renal nurses working with postoperative patients are chiefly responsible for timely healing. Because steroids slow down the healing process, and sutures need to be left in for three weeks, infection can be a big problem. In order to ensure that no permanent damage has occurred during the healing process, nurses need to be constantly aware of their patient's condition.

Maintaining hydration and electrolyte balance is more important for kidney transplant patients than it is for others, due to the impaired function of the kidneys during this stage. As always, nurses need to tend to the wound and the patient's pain. Many of the medications that the patient will be prescribed following surgery will act as a constipator, so it's important to administer laxatives, stool softeners and enemas to clear the bowels.

Labels: Dialysis Nurse, Nursing Career, Renal Nurse

One of the biggest problems facing healthcare today is the Nursing Shortage. There are at least 100,000 nursing vacancies across the country, but 500,000 registered nurses aren't working in their field due to dissatisfaction and a number of other causes. Combined with aging baby boomers who will need assistance in the coming years, America simply doesn't have the healthcare infrastructure to support the demand.

The Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence is doing their part to help right the shortage. The primary goal of the Jonas Center is to increase nursing recruitment and retention in New York City hospitals, but they hope to expand the limits of their philanthropy. The Center is funded in part by the Barbara and Donald Jonas Family Fund.

The Jonas Center aspires to reward and promote effective nursing programs and leadership. By signing grants to and acknowledging hospitals that meet and exceed the expectations of the center, the group hopes to decrease nursing vacancies and improve the diversity among nurses. Though the Jonas Center focuses on New York City, they recognize hospitals elsewhere as well.

One of the most important aspects of the Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence's nursing recruitment and retention programs is their intermediary function. Representatives of the Jonas Center help to facilitate discussion between nurses, healthcare workers, lobbyists and business owners. These discussions can greatly improve nursing conditions by raising awareness of problems in the workplace and drawing attention to funding concerns. Furthermore, by involving lobbyists and policy makers, the Jonas Center helps to bring small scale changes to the national level.

Another impact of the Jonas Center is their work with grant-makers. Many fully-deserving hospitals and nursing programs miss out on excellent opportunities for funding because of simple ignorance. The Jonas Center fosters relationships between hospitals and the academic world, which helps to bring changes where they need to be brought. This connects the hospital directly with grant benefactors, greatly increasing their chances of getting the funds they need.

Furthermore, the Jonas Center brings even more grants to the market by encouraging donors to create grants for hospitals. By interacting with numerous philanthropic groups and donors, the Jonas Center is making it easier than ever for hospitals to find the funding they've lacked over the years.

The Jonas Center works personally with nursing leaders to improve conditions both in the workplace and in the entire hospital as well. The Center supports and provides leadership that works toward the betterment of everyone involved in New York City healthcare. By presenting the findings from these changes to medical journals and practices, the Jonas Center is creating a working healthcare model, an example to hospitals across the country.

This year, the Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence gave four grants to institutions that met the standards for their Jonas Nursing Scholars program. The entire program is awarding $2.5 million to deserving nursing schools. The Columbia University School of Nursing was one of the beneficiaries.

Labels: Healthcare, Nursing Career, Nursing Shortage, Stimulus

America's health care shortage extends into every level of its hospitals, from nurses to gift shop volunteers. This shortage can cause huge problems in effective coverage for United States citizens. However, statisticians believe that increasing the number of nurses per hospital will improve health care quality for everyone.

The highest level of the health care shortage is in primary care doctors. Though the federal government has been pushing for increased primary care physician presence, their efforts have failed. Primary care physicians have been decreasing faster and faster every year since the 1970s.

Many hospitals have found the solution for the lack of primary care physicians: nurses. Nurses, and especially those with advanced training like nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists, provide much of the same care as doctors, at lower price and with less education, as reported by the Yale Journal on Regulation.

Both the lay community and members of the health care sector are attributing major hospital mortality problems to the nursing shortage. In a 2005 edition of Nursing Economic$, researchers found that more than half of registered nurses and CNOs (Chief Nursing Officers) think that reduced staffing is causing a decrease in the quality of care in hospitals and other health care centers. Over 90% of registered nurses complained about overstaffing causing poor patient care. On the other hand, 40% of American citizens have criticized the health care sector, claiming that between 1999 and 2004, quality of hospital care has sunk, citing stress, understaffing and lessened individual care as major factors in the condition of health care.

A study by The New England Journal of Medicine in 2002 tested the hypothesis that low nurse staffing levels will increase the number of deaths and complications in patients. After examining almost 800 hospitals in eleven states, the research team concluded that higher numbers of nursing care hours shortened the day, reduced risk of infection, pneumonia, heart attack and 'failure to rescue.' Additionally, surgical patients who saw their nurses more regularly had decreased urinary tract infections and increased rates of success after surgery. Overall, the study proved that increasing coverage of patients by upping the number of nurses on staff will lead to better health care in hospital patients.

A further study in Health Services Research and the Journal of Nursing Administration went on to study the effects of education on mortality rates. The research teams found that hospitals that staff nurses who graduated from baccalaureate programs had lower rates of mortality and 'failure to rescue' than did hospitals who staffed nurses with a lower level of education.

The study of mortalities as a consequence of the nursing shortage has been the most frightening of all. In 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association came forward with research on the benefits of increasing nursing staff. Thousands of lives would be saved a year by simple changes in hiring. At the University of Pennsylvania, where the research was conducted, the team found that a hospital with a low ratio of nurses to patients, patients are almost a third more likely to die than in hospitals that are adequately staffed. Every patient added to a nurse's daily workload in the surgery ward increases the chance of death by 7%.

Labels: Career Profiles, Healthcare, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs, Nursing School, Recruit Nurses

When you enter the hospital to have a baby, who greets you? Although we associate our doctors with delivering our babies, often it's a nurse who walks us through labor and is with us from the first cramp until we wave goodbye with our newborn in our arms. Not every hospital stay is as happy as delivering a child, but the one constant throughout each and every visit we have to a hospital is the presence of nurses. Who then, can the general public rely on during a nursing shortage crisis? Although new graduates are entering the hospital workforce daily, they are struggling with the demand and overload of nursing shortage. The United States is in a clear nursing shortage crisis for many reasons.

Although there are many qualified students entering traditional campus and online nursing degree programs, there simply isn't enough instructors nor are there enough spaces to fulfill the current nursing shortage. This is due to the current economic crisis and lack of funding in schools, as well as fewer students willing to take on the financial burden of student loans and the credit card debt that they would incur to further their education. Even if there were enough spaces for interested nursing applicants, instructors are not as readily available as they have been in years past. Nursing instructors need to have a Bachelors degree at a minimum, with a Masters degree being preferable, in order to instruct. There are not enough nurses pursuing their higher degrees to overcome the demand.

New nursing grads are almost guaranteed to go through long periods of exhaustion and burn out. They work tremendous hours, and have the added stress of being the full support team for their patients. Whereas doctors simply examine and move on, nurses are required to be dedicated to the care of their patients. New nurses find that they have a very high patient to nurse ratio, and it would almost seem impossible to keep up with the demands of each patient over your shift if you have 5 people ailing to 1 nurse. Not only do they juggle many patients, they provide more over all care to their patients than physicians. The job is all encompassing, and put together with long hours and 2 week long stints without a day off, our new nurses are experiencing tremendous stress and pressure from the nursing shortage.

Extra burden is placed on nursing graduates, as their aging supervisors get ready for retirement. It's no secret in the US that the retirement of the large majority of baby boomers will put a huge strain on health care. Nurses getting ready to retire don’t have ready replacements in new graduates.

How do we lessen the burden on our new fleet of nurses? The only solution is to educate more nurses. In order to do so, we need to free up more spots in educational institutions. Our aging nurse population needs to focus on fulfilling educational supervisory roles as opposed to maintaining employment in the hospitals. Hospitals themselves need to put a heavy focus on restructuring within the hospital to diminish the impact of the shortage on individual nurses.

The nursing shortage is a vicious circle of stress, fatigue, and an overwhelming sense of helplessness at never quite being enough for their patients. Although many will say they are fulfilled by their careers, the sense that the job is never quite complete may never leave them. Perhaps with the new Government health care initiatives, the solution to the crisis is right around the corner.

Labels: Nursing Career, Nursing Shortage

As one of the few remaining United States industries with any growth, the health care sector is becoming an attractive option for American workers. With more gainful employees being fired by the day, these workers are looking to the future for other opportunities.

While America has been laying off its workers, hospitals have been hiring them. Today's vacancy rate of 16% reflects the constant shortage of American nurses in hospitals.3% as noted by the American Health Care Association in 2008, is the worst reported since the sixties. This shortage, according to Health Affairs, a policy journal, started about a decade ago in 1998 and peaked in 2001 with an average vacancy rate of 13%. This shortage can only increase in the upcoming years, as older generations require medical care that cannot be provided by current hospitals.

The nursing shortage itself has been driving nurses out of the workforce. Dissatisfaction with long hours and understaffing has caused many nurses to look into alternate employment opportunities. This has exacerbated the problem even further, as the nurses that make it through crowded nursing schools don't necessarily enter hospitals after graduation.

Lay offs and cut backs are sending these nurses back to hospitals. Most nurses think of hospitals as being recession-proof due to the need for the procession, keeping the workers in the industry. Sadly, the recession may be responsible for the filling in of the nursing shortage in the short term, since nurses of retirement age are forced to continue working in order to provide income and health benefits for their families. Long term effects will doubtlessly show a shortage increase again when these nurses are finally able to resign.

Researchers are finding that the nursing shortage has decreased slightly, as nurses reenter the workforce, and current nurses work more hours to increase pay and work for years rather than retiring, due to spouse's lost job and a lack of health insurance. This could actually conclude the nursing shortage in some parts of the United States, as small towns and rural areas are hardest hit by the shortage.

A little less than a quarter of a billion nurses joined the health care workforce in the last year, which represents a greater jump than any other in the last twenty years, says Health Affairs. For example, Truman Medical Centers has seen a 13% drop in vacancy rates from 20% to 7% in the last year alone. Using techniques that maximize recruitment and retention, such as funding for continuing education and online nursing degree programs, can be a deciding factor in the success of a hospital.

The recession favors older nurses over young nurses, which can be disappointing for new graduates. Though positions in hospitals are open, many administrators prefer experienced workers, and will wait to hire a nurse reentering the field, rather than a new nurse on his or her first assignment. These hires will eventually find placements, but the process may take longer than they had originally expected based on the economic climate.

The majority of nurses hired in the last year are already approaching retirement age, with only a third between 21 and 34. Recruitment in other countries will help bridge the nursing gap in the short run. Almost twice as many nurses are foreign born today compared to the numbers from twenty years ago, and 10% of these foreign born nurses moved to the United States in the years since the shortage peaked.

Labels: Healthcare, Nursing Career, Nursing Shortage, Online Nursing Degree

A hospice nurse is one of the most important parts of palliative care. Hospice nurses are similar to other nurses in their duties, like the administration of medication, caring for patients and providing emotional support. They also observe patients and work with physicians in order to provide patients with the best care available.

Working as a hospice nurse is not easy. You know from the start that your patient will not survive, no matter what you do. Consequently, the object of the hospice nurse is to monitor conditions and administer medication to reduce pain, not to cure. This special nurse makes sure that the patient's final days of life are comfortable.

It takes a caring person to do this job. You need patience and resolve in order to treat patients you know you can't help. The majority of hospice patients have cancer, but AIDS, Lou Gehrig's disease and heart and lung disease also affect many. The primary job of the hospice nurse is to alleviate pain and prevent suffering, letting the patient live out their final days as comfortably as possible.

The hospice nurse is in charge of mediating between the patient's family and the physician. They are also charged with the coordination of patients and medication. A case manager will ensure that the nursing staff is equipped with all necessary supplies and medication, and is prepared to provide the necessary elements of patient care. Your nurse will design a plan of care, and is trained with a specialized nursing degree to perform skilled nursing procedures.

Hospices are required to provide services, both emotional and spiritual, that allow terminally ill patients to spend their last days at home with family. Many hospice nurses work at the patient's home, spending time with the patient for hours a day. In the event of a crisis, like respiratory failure or the active stage of death, a hospice nurse is required to stay until the event ends through medical care.

Hospices provide around the clock nursing care, supporting your loved ones twenty-four hours a day. As a result, many nurses have to work through the night in order to maintain quality care.

One of the most difficult parts of the role is explaining to the family what to expect. The nurse will walk the patient's family through the final stages of the illness, letting them know when and how to expect the active stage of dying. The nurse also provides emotional support for the family in this difficult time.

Hospice nurses provide care for the family after the death of the patient. Frequently, the nurse will visit in the weeks after the patient's passing to assist in the grieving process.

In order to become a hospice nurse, you'll need to be a registered nurse and have a Bachelor of Science degree is nursing. After two years of full-time work in a hospice nursing practice, you can take the National Board for the Certification of Hospice Nurses' exam. After passing the test, you will be a certified hospice nurse.

Labels: Hospice Nurse, Nursing Career, Nursing Jobs