​Legislators Back Effort To Boost Ranks Of Nurses

From Rockland County Legislature: Rockland County Legislators are supporting a state Assembly bill that calls for the creation of a professional nursing scholarship program, and requesting the Senate to do the same.

According to experts, a potential health care crisis is looming as a majority of nurses in New York state are scheduled to retire in the next 10 to 15 years. Nurses are on the front line when it comes to health care – in specialty hospitals, clinics, even the local family doctor’s office.

“We face the very real possibility of a shortage of nurses just at a time when our state and our nation will need them most,” Legislator Aney Paul said. “But if we act now, we can avoid problems and ensure all who need adequate, professional nursing care will receive it.”

Paul (D-Nanuet) is a nurse practioner and holds a doctorate in nursing practice.

The nation’s aging population, the increasing prevalence of chronic disease – in part because people are living longer, an aging workforce, and limited capacity in nursing education programs are among the factors contributing to the problem.

The proposed Empire State Professional Nursing Scholarship Program would provide financial support to applicants who enter or continue in a registered nurse educational program. The applicants would also have to agree to deliver nursing care in a specialty, setting or designated region of New York that has a shortage of nurses, or to teach nursing students.

The program would also establish grants for nursing education to establish or expand training programs for nurses, and to increase the opportunities for nursing education at community based sites.

County Legislators voted 16-0 Tuesday to support Assembly bill A.00764 and asking the Senate to back a version.

Here’s a look at some of the numbers:

• Most nurses in New York are scheduled to retire in the next 10 to 15 years, according to testimony by the New York State Nurses Association.
• 1.2 million vacancies will emerge for registered nurses between 2014 and 2022; by 2025, the shortfall is expected to be more than twice as large as any nurse shortage experienced, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
• The Baby Boomer generation is the driving force of the potential crisis.
• Today, there are more Americans over the age of 65 than at any other time in U.S. history, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
• Between 2010 and 2030, the population of senior citizens will increase by 75 percent to 69 million people – one in five Americans will be a senior citizen; by 2050, an estimated 88.5 million people in the U.S. will be age 65 or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
• About 80 percent of older adults have at least one chronic condition, and 68 percent have at least two, according to the National Council on Aging.

Some resources:

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/02/nursing-shortage/459741/ http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/nursing-shortage https://www.nurse.com/blog/2016/02/16/u-s-still-headed-for-nurse-shortage/

U.S. still headed for nurse shortage | Nursing News ...

www.nurse.com

Despite being one of the fastest-growing occupations in the country, demand for nurses may outpace supply and lead to a nursing shortage.

The U.S. Is on the Verge of a Major Nursing Shortage

www.theatlantic.com

America’s 3 million nurses make up the largest segment of the health-care workforce in the U.S., and nursing is currently one of the fastest-growing occupations in ...

Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet - American Association of ...

www.aacn.nche.edu

American Association of Colleges of Nursing One Dupont Circle, NW Suite 530 Washington, DC 20036 Phone: (202) 463-6930 Fax: (202) 785-8320

Photo courtesy of Rockland County Legislature