Thank you to nurse educators and to Johnson and Johnson for a tribute to Nurse Educators.


Finding qualified Nurse Educators that are willing to take a decrease in salary to teach becomes a challenge for many nursing schools. Nurses with education degrees can sometimes make 3 times the salary if they elect to work in a hospital over working in a classroom. These days, it is quite common for Nurse Educators to work fulltime in a hospital and take a nursing college faculty position as a part time endeavor.

Nursing schools that can be flexible with instructor schedules will likely have a better recruitment rate and secure more specialized instructors.

Take the time to shape 1 mind and you might inspire 1,000 more.

Right now, all over America, understanding is breaking through. Techniques are being perfected. Hearts touched. Lives saved. All because one nurse educator took the time to shape one mind.

In huge lecture halls and tiny hospital corridors, at the end of an exhausting shift. And in the seconds between life and death knowledge is being shared, offered, planted, driven into eager minds that will take it and run and pass it on.

Light new fires and inspire others. Do you have it in you to become a Nurse Educator, willing to share all you've seen, what you've learned, your proudest achievements and most painful moments. Do you have what it takes to fan a spark into a flame? To inspire a new generation?

Behind every nurse who touches a life, there's a nurse educator who first touched them. Behind every life saved, a lifetime of experience shared. And when you see that flicker of comprehension, or watch one of your students succeed, there is no greater feeling in the world.

Not everyone has what it takes to be a nurse educator. It is an elite group comprised on the best and the brightest. The ones who want to give back and have the skills to do it, the medical instincts and training. Academic achievement, perseverance and compassion.

If you're one of the lucky few who has these gifts and you have what it takes to pass on your knowledge and inspire you may touch hearts you have never seen. Save lives long after you're gone. Impact generations you'll never meet.

One nurse educator can shape a mind. Her's shapes another and another. One mind can inspire 1,000 more. Maybe it will be yours. Shape the minds that save lives. Be a Nurse Educator.

Explore theses accredited online nursing degree opportunities below and request free no obligation information from any that interest you.

We recommend getting information from several schools so you can compare the programs, costs, time commitments and financial aid options.

Labels: Career Profiles, In the Hospital, Nurse Educator, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage, Nursing Student, Online Nursing Degree

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

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 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

Two UCF nursing students have learned what it really means to save a life - their own. Kerrie Lynch and Gaby Chaparro, who never met until a week before graduation, both entered the nursing program at the University of Central Florida hoping to make a difference in the health of others, but neither of them ever expected to save their own lives.

The two women graduated from the University of Central Florida in early August after undergoing the test of a lifetime: cancer. Both Lynch and Chaparro owe their lives today to their education, which provided them with the tools for early detection. After diagnosis in fall of 2008, the women have remained in class, and have graduated this summer.

Lynch, 43, who took classes at the University of Central Florida's main campus, learned what a breast tumor felt like in a Health Assessment Lab class. The school provided false models and fabricated body parts in order to demonstrate patient evaluation. One of the models had a breast tumor, the feeling of which Lynch noted.

A few months later, while performing her routine self breast exam, Lynch recognized the feel of a "little Jelly Belly underneath the skin." After visiting the University of Central Florida's Health Services Center, meeting with doctors and undergoing tests, Lynch's hunch was found to be correct: she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Because the tumor was found so early, she went through three months of chemotherapy and a month and a half of radiation treatment.

Similarly, Chaparro, 27, realized that she had cancer during one of her classes at the University of Central California's Cocoa campus. After learning about chronic diseases in one of her courses, she recognized the symptoms of colon cancer. However, many gastrointestinal disorders and diseases, like Crohn's disease and Celiac, present with the same symptoms, so it was difficult to pinpoint what was affecting her. Chaparro had dealt with increasingly painful stomach problems as of summer of 2008, but doctors had ignored her suspicions, as a result of her youth.

As her condition worsened, she visited the UCF Health Services Center, where she was examined by a Nurse Practitioner named Kristina Grabnickas. Noticing Chaparro's weight loss, Grabnickas referred her to a gastroenterologist, who confirmed Chaparro's diagnosis of colon cancer. Unlike Lynch, Chapparo's cancer was not found early, and had already metastasized at this point, making treatment more difficult for her than it had been for Lynch. Chaparro underwent six months of chemotherapy.

Fortunately for both Chaparro and Lynch, their professors, counselors, and nursing peers were understanding of the stress both students were under, and allowed the two to adapt their schedule in order to fit their chemotherapy regimens while remaining on track for graduation. Additionally, the professors arranged for labs and community outreach programs that would not interfere with the women's suppressed immune systems.

Both Chaparro and Lynch finished treatments for their cancers before graduation. The two now hope to work in hospitals, applying what they've experienced in the pursuit of their degrees to their patient care.

Labels: Breast Cancer, Cancer, Cancer Detection, Colon Cancer, Nursing School, Nursing Student