Two Florida Surveys Find Nurse Shortage Will Increase
Two surveys released by the Florida Center for Nursing shows that the nursing shortage in Florida will continue to increase. One survey found this is due to high vacancy and turnover rates as well as insufficient budgets to employ more nurses, while the other attributed the shortage increase to a lack of faculty and teaching space to train new nurses.
According to the first survey, titled "2007 Nurse Employer Survey: Methods and Statewide Results", the current nurse situation has high vacancy and turnover rates and budgets that did not allow for enough nurses on staff. The nearly 700 employers surveyed in the study reported having more than 5,000 available positions for licensed nurses, with home health agencies having the highest vacancy rates. Additionally, many employers said that they needed more nurses than their budgets could afford.
The second survey, conducted with the Florida Board of Nursing, titled “2007 Nursing Education Program Annual Report and Workforce Survey”, found that nursing education programs have had to turn away qualified student applicants due to a lack of faculty and lack of clinical space.
According
to surveyed nursing schools, older faculty members are retiring and schools
cannot offer salaries that are as high as those offered by medical facilities.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk.