The nursing shortage in the United States, and throughout the world is reaching staggering proportions (Cooper, 2003). Statistics show that half the nursing workforce will reach retirement age in 15 years, adding to the problem. Between 1983 and 1998, the average age of registered nurses (RNs) increased from 37 to 41.9 years, and the number of RNs under the age of 30 decreased by 41 percent. Predictions are that by the year 2010, as many as 40 percent of RNs will be more than 50 years of age. By 2020, there will be a 20 percent shortage of RNs nurses.
One reason for the shortage is the change in generations: the baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 resulted in a large population increase through high birth rates, but the next 11 years, which produced the Generation Xers, saw a drop in the birth rate from 77 million baby boomers to only 44 million Generation Xers (Cooper, 2003). This resulted in a smaller entry-level population for the workforce. Also, nursing education has changed dramatically, with 40 percent fewer women choosing nursing as a profession since 1973. Nursing school enrollment for an entry-level baccalaureate degree program in the Fall of 1999 fell for the fifth year in a row. At the same time, the two-year associate degree program usually attracts students over 30 years of age, adding to the aging nursing population. The number of people entering this program has increased considerably, and many of these nurses have families already so wish to work shorter hours. Faculty members are aging too, and the average age of new doctoral recipients is now 45 years. Doctoral program enrollment has been flat since 1996, meaning there wonÆt be enough professors to teach future nurses.
A further problem is the wages for nurses (Cooper, 2003). Wages for RNs only increased 3 percent between 1983 and 1991, and by 1994, wages began to fall. Managed care meant less need for nurses in hospitals, as many patients ...