Last week I mentioned the new nurse who was having difficulty finding a job. We were at a social gathering of many nurses and she was sitting directly in front of me with a variety of tattoos and facial piercings. She knew my experience and asked me for help. I was literally caught between a rock and a hard place…

I first asked her to tell me where she had applied. Her interests were in acute care (of course) and she wanted to eventually work in an intensive care-type setting. I asked her if she had any experience as an assistant or nurse-extender and she replied that she had – several years. And she had graduated in the top 10% of her class and passed the NCLEX state board examination on the first attempt 3 weeks after graduating from school. She was perplexed…

I needed to approach the touchy topic of personal appearance but didn’t have a good idea how to do this without criticizing or insulting. I decided to ask her for her opinion as to why she isn’t finding employment which opened the door…. “I think it’s because I have so many tattoos and I’m pierced.”

Whew! I then asked her what she was planning to do about the tattoos and piercings since they seemed to be interfering with her finding employment. That’s when the volcano erupted! “What do you mean what I am planning to do about them?” I needed to learn what the school of nursing that she attended thought about these items….

I did a bit more digging and learned that she had had the tattoos and piercings before applying to a school of nursing. She was told that they would not interfere with attending clinical as long as she had asked every one of her assigned clients if they would mind. If the client declined her care as a student she would wear gloves the entire time to keep her hands covered. The school had expected her to wear studs in her pierced facial body areas to minimize the risk of infection.

After she explained the school’s approach I suggested that she take the same during the next interview. I suggested that she:

• Explain the tattoos
• Describe how they were handled during clinical experiences
• Discuss how the clients were asked if they minded having a nurse with tattoos
• Relate how gloves were used for those clients who minded the tattoos

She agreed to use this approach and we both hoped for the best…

Several weeks had gone by and I found myself again in the company of the new graduate. She approached me and was pleased to tell me that she had been offered a position on a Medical-Surgical unit in a small community hospital. The hospital does not have an extensive intensive care program but it does have specialty departments including hemodialysis and an emergency room, so she was hoping that in a short while she could transfer to a different care area. She also shared that she was investigating laser treatments to see if any of the hand tattoos could be removed. This situation had a happy ending.

Through my experience with tattoos and body piercings I learned that there are geographical differences in how they are handled in schools of nursing. Along both East and West coasts in major city schools of nursing, the limits include no tattoos on the hands and only two ear piercings. The nostril piercing was mixed. A few schools of nursing didn’t have a policy to address this body area but others did and the direction was “tastefully” placed. Throughout the South and Mid-Western states, schools of nursing had policies where tattoos were not permitted on the hands and piercings were limited to the ears only.

I believe this issue is going to attract more attention in the years ahead. Many people are returning to school later in life and pursing education as a nurse. These individuals may have been in professions or have other life experiences where tattoos were accepted and even encouraged. I believe as long as organizations have policies to address and ways to approach the colleague with tattoos and body piercings, professionalism will be maintained without sacrificing individuality.

Thanks for reading and see you next week!!

How many nurses remember when the hair wasn’t allowed to touch the collar when in uniform? Fingernails were to be cut short and no rings other than a wedding band were permitted. No, this is not the early 1900s but the 1980s! That wasn’t so very long ago, but times have surely changed.

I recall attending a clinical rotation with fellow undergraduate student nurses when the clinical instructor called one of us “out” for having pierced ears! Fast forward about 5 years and I was participating in my graduate school clinical practicum. I was the “trainer” and had a group of undergraduate senior nursing students completing their Leadership rotation. All of the female student nurses were wearing acrylic nail products! Thankfully these products are not endorsed by many health care facilities today (and actually are not permitted due to infection control issues) but it did not take long for the nursing students to “personalize” their attire.

What do these changes say about the profession? Where is this going to end? After holding many different positions in health care facilities and alternative centers of practice, I’ve learned to not be surprised. During one orientation session as the trainer of a disease management company a new colleague arrived with bilateral upper extremity tattoos and a pierced tongue. Being the open-minded nurse that I am I did not find the tattoos offensive. However I was very concerned with the pierced tongue considering the new colleague talked with a lisp. And, the colleague was going to be providing client care over the telephone…..

I had an opportunity to gingerly talk about the new colleague’s colorful body art. She explained that nursing was her second career and it was acceptable to have tattoos and body piercings in her “previous life.” The organization that I worked for did not have a policy regarding body art and piercings so this would not hinder employment. I was curious. Coming from a health care perspective, aren’t these nurses concerned about hepatitis or HIV from needles used during the tattoos and piercings? What about infection? What are we teaching in school about tattoos and body piercings? “What happened to professionalism?”

After more and more colleagues started to be hired sporting interesting designs and logos on various exposed body areas I just needed to know. What is the motivation today to have tattoos and body piercings for those in nursing? I got up my nerve and finally asked a very nice soft-spoken new colleague about her interesting tattoo on her leg. She smiled and responded “I did that before I knew any better – when I believed that nothing bad would ever happen to me and I would live forever.”

I found that statement interesting but also very much in-line with the beliefs and psychosocial development of those in late adolescence and young adult hood. And my curiosity was satisfied, for the time being…

I’ve had other opportunities to ask nurse colleagues of various age ranges to “tell their story” about the body art and piercings. The stories that I’ve heard have ranged from “did it on a dare” to “don’t really remember because I was at a party and woke up with them.” Need I say more?

But I have one nurse colleague who happens to be in my same age bracket and who is now sporting a brand new tattoo and pierced eyebrow. She took one look at me and laughed – and started to explain before I had a chance to get the words out of my mouth.

“Why are tattoos and body piercings only for the young and inexperienced? I have always wanted to express myself in this way and now that I can afford it, I am.” The tattoo by the way is very tasteful and the brow is pierced with a nice-sized diamond stud. But, her nails are short, her hair is off of her collar, and she only wears a wedding band when providing client care. Sometimes old habits are hard to break…..but are these same habits being promoted in the new nurses of today?

Not too long ago I was in the company of a new graduate nurse who just couldn’t find a job. She had tattoos on both arms and hands and 2 piercings on her face. And she asked me what I could suggest to help her find employment… She put me on the spot! Wait until you hear this story! See you then!!

Recently I was at a gathering of several seasoned registered nurses. One of the nurses was discussing the interview process held with new graduate nurses. An issue that was particularly irritating to this nurse was the observation that the new nurse “expected” to be offered a position.

This nurse colleague of mine continued by describing the new graduate’s lack of attention to “appearance” When asked to elaborate further, this colleague blurted out “do you want a nurse taking care of you who has facial piercings and tattoos?”

The need to be both verbally and non-verbally expressive is a characteristic that I hold dear. However, my nurse colleague made a good point. There is a certain level of professionalism that is expected in nursing. Is professionalism being demoted during the quest for individuality? What does this mean for new graduates, or any nurses, who chose to express themselves through body piercings and tattoos?

My nurse colleague said the interview did not proceed very well. The new graduate did not elaborate on any questions that were asked and simply responded with “yes” and “no” answers. (I did not begin a critique of my colleague’s interviewing skills at that time but realize that that could have been one reason why the responses were limited.) The colleague continued by saying that no attempt was made to minimize the body art and did not see how it could be done considering tattoos were covering both hands and wrists.

This is an issue that will continue to come up during interviews. Body piercings and tattoos have been around for quite some time however they are becoming more mainstream. What was once seen as decoration for members of the military is now commonplace among the rest of society. What may be acceptable at a certain age may not be acceptable as a person matures and takes different avenues in life.

My colleague was also irritated in that the hiring organization did not have any processes or policies in place regarding “body art.” She said that she was distracted through the entire interview because of the decorations on both hands and piercings on the face and was very happy when the process ended. However the new graduate asked for a “start date” and was unhappy to learn that one was not being provided.

All nurses have learned that the profession focuses on the health, care, and support of both ill and well clients. Every school of nursing curriculum includes a class on the history of nursing and the consistency in professionalism throughout the years. Somehow and in some way the support of professionalism is being minimized today.

I cannot say what I might have done if I were the one conducting the interview. I know that I have seen nurses in different health care facilities with bright and expressive body art taking care of clients. I have overheard nurses explain to clients what the different tattoos mean and why they were done. And I have yet to hear a client refuse care by a nurse with body art.

I’m wondering if my colleague’s opinion about body piercings and tattoos is more personal than professional. I am wondering what schools of nursing are teaching students about body art and what is the approach used if a student is “discovered” as having body art once starting this course of study.

There are many unanswered questions here. Next week will focus on the new graduate’s perspective regarding body art and gaining employment within a healthcare organization. See you then….

Bullying in the profession of nursing is not limited to staff nurses. This behavior can be directed to nearly any nurse who is “new” to an organization. Unfortunately not much has been studied or written about bullying behavior in non-direct care providing roles.

I was exposed to bullying behavior as a new staff nurse and I had expected that that “part” of nursing was behind me when I accepted a position as a staff development instructor in a major city trauma center. I was wrong.

In this role I was expected to provide educational support to 8 specific care areas. Half of these areas received different levels of clients who were recovering from traumatic injuries. I had not provided direct care to victims of trauma when functioning as a staff nurse so I had a bit of a learning curve but I was not concerned. I thought I was on track and doing quite well however there was one person I could not please: the nurse manager of the orthopedic trauma unit.

As the staff development instructor for 8 units, I would routinely “round” on my units at least once a day unless orientation class was in session. It was during orientation classes when the trouble started.

I became the “bad guy” because I was investing more time in the needs of nurses new to the organization than to those who were already employed. I was termed “Johnny Come Lately.” My knowledge base was commented upon in front of staff nurses and I was laughed at when conducting training sessions. I was reported to senior leadership as being a “poor choice” for orthopedic nurses and was to be removed from the organization effective immediately.

During this time I had made my direct supervisor aware of this behavior. My performance as a staff development instructor was scrutinized by many senior leadership personnel and well documented. I was not removed from the organization but after 3 months of this abuse one senior leadership person finally talked to me about the nurse manager’s behavior. This is when I learned that the nurse manager had applied for the position of staff development instructor – the one that I had earned – but did not have the correct education or experience. Her entire goal was to demonstrate that I was hired without the correct experience either.

I tried many things to improve the situation:

• Question the behavior
• Document the behavior
• Ask for guidance
• Create a plan

I had “dealt with” this situation for over a year. Even though I made the decision to leave the role for another within the organization after that time I learned quite a bit from the experience. I realized that a bully can exist within any role within any organization. And, I might not be able to change the bully’s behavior but I can control how I react. This was actually the most valuable lesson of all.

See you next week!

If anyone in the nursing profession doesn’t believe that bullying occurs, I invite them to peruse several web sites created to support nurses and type in the search box “bullying.” I did just that today and was completely overwhelmed with the number of posts by nurses about being bullied at work.

These posts all seem to have a central theme:

• Senior nurses target new nurses
• Nurse Managers do not get involved
• Human resource staff counsels nurses to “deal with it”

And other observations from the nursing blogs

• Nurse Managers are frequently identified as a bully
• Nurse bullies have been observed bullying clients
• Bullying behavior is tolerated by the majority of staff
• Physicians identify bullies and avoid them

There are quite a few nurses out there who will not stand for bullying in the profession however still perceive themselves as being powerless against bullies. Why is this occurring? And what can be done to stop it?

Well the American Nurses Association’s Tip Card for Workplace Bullying offers these suggestions:

• Don’t participate in bullying activities.
• Become aware of what behaviors to which you are particularly sensitive.
• Make your supervisor aware of the disruptive colleague and behavior.
• Step in when you see others being bullied.
• Confronting bullies may be uncomfortable, but the only mistake you can make is to avoid the conflict altogether.

Obviously these tips are not working since bullying still occurs. Since I was the target of workplace bullying when a practicing staff nurse, I used a variety of techniques to “deal with” the obnoxious behavior:

• Smile at the bully – In some cases this can disarm a bully
• Offer to help the bully – This strategy helps to align you and the person and offer some common ground on which to work out your differences
• Ask the bully for their opinion on X, Y, or Z – this gave the bully an opportunity to demonstrate knowledge of a particular subject, depending upon the question they bully may know a lot or a little about a subject. In either case, it’s opening a dialogue and keeping the lines of communication open.
• Volunteer to work with the bully on unit projects – other staff thought I was offering myself as the bully’s personal punching bag, but ultimately, I demonstrated to the bully that I was not going to go away and that we were going to have to learn to work together.

Overtime, using these approaches I was able to steer the bully away from “picking on” other new staff nurses. And within a few months, the bully left the care area for “other opportunities.” Even though I too left the care area shortly thereafter, I never forgot the experience and vowed to never permit bullying anywhere near me or my work.

But alas that would not be the case. Bullying followed me as I started working in staff development in a major city trauma center. This was my first exposure to a Nurse Manager bully and it was horrible! I’ll tell you about it next week…… See you then!

There are some nurses who no longer provide client care. The reasons for leaving can range from:

• Tired of working different shifts
• Physical ailments
• Relocation to live near family

But there is one reason that is rarely discussed openly; a reason that causes many nurses to leave the profession within 6 months of being a nurse. This reason is bullying. Bullying is rampant in school age children and some colleges and university organizations but it is rarely advertised or discussed within the profession of nursing.

Bullying is defined as an act of repeated aggressive behavior in order to intentionally cause physical or mental harm. The statistics on the number of nurses who are identified as “bullies” does not exist however the behavior of a nurse bully is obvious:

• Nonverbal actions of intimidation
• Gossiping about a new nurse
• Publicly humiliating another nurse
• Inappropriately accusing another nurse of an action that was not done
• Making undesirable work assignments

Bullying in nursing is not new. It has been around for many decades but appears to be getting worse, so much so that the American Nurses Association publishes a “tip card” intended to aid those who are victims of this obnoxious behavior. Thanks for your help ANA, but, this does not address or solve the problem.

Bullies in nursing need to feel powerful. These nurses feel intimidated when they perceive a work colleague has an attribute they lack or need developed. And of course the easiest work colleague to intimidate is the new nurse.

Nurse bullies have a history of using behavior to “keep someone down” or “put someone in their place.” This behavior can be traced back to grade school or college actions of the same behavior. The only difference is the location of the bullying.

What’s even more disheartening is that bullying can begin during nursing school. An example is a student nurse who missed a clinical day because of being ill. The instructor refused the physician’s excuse and added that the student needs to “make better life choices.” Huh? What does this comment teach the student nurse about nurses?

I painfully recall being the victim of bullying when starting out as a new graduate nurse. I had worked on one care area as a student and specifically asked for employment on that area because during my student rotation I found the nursing staff positive, upbeat, and welcoming. Boy was I wrong! It didn’t take a week before I learned that that “loving behavior” was nothing more than a ruse to cover the undercurrent of criticism, anger, and hostility which was, for some reason, directed towards me. The only advice I was given then was to “shut up and take it.” This advice was given to me by my nurse manager.

I didn’t leave the unit at that time but made a vow to leave as soon as possible. And once I left, I never went back to floor nursing. No, I didn’t leave the profession but rather took another direction in my career. I wonder how many other nurses have done the same thing. I wonder what I could have done then to change the behavior and would it have mattered?

Next week I’ll review suggestions on how to combat bullies in nursing. See you then!

In the Bloomberg news last week it was announced that the Nursing Shortage was “officially over” until 2020. This magical year is when the vast majority of currently practicing nurses is expected to retire, creating a need for nurses to fill vacated positions.

But in another report from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), a record number of nursing school applicants was turned away from attending nursing school. This number includes applicants to graduate nursing programs.

What I find particularly interesting are the reasons for turning away nursing school applicants:

• Insufficient clinical teaching sites
• Lack of faculty
• Limited classroom space
• Insufficient preceptors
• Budget cuts

The AACN report continues by stating that the core reason for turning away prospective students is because of insufficient numbers of faculty. Since when are nursing faculty not considered nurses?

The last time I checked, it is a prerequisite to be a nurse before becoming a member of any school of nursing’s teaching staff. And once the position is obtained, there are additional expectations that need to be fulfilled such as working as an active staff nurse for a predetermined number of hours each month or year. So suddenly the nursing shortage is over but the faculty shortage continues. Are they not the same thing? And when did these requirements change since I was an active school of nursing faculty member?

The belief that nursing faculty are not “nurses” fuels the fire that unless a nurse takes care of a client in a hospital bed that caregiver is “not a nurse.” The statement from the AACN is particularly disheartening since this is one body of nursing that should help change the opinion and belief system that permeates the vast majority of society’s thinking about nurses and nursing.

And, what is going to be done to ensure that there is enough nursing faculty for the mythical nursing shortage looming in the future? Who at the AACN are studying why there are insufficient clinical teaching sites? What is being done to overcome the issue of limited classroom space? What nurses are being prepared for the preceptor role?

The issue of insufficient clinical teaching sites is easily overcome by opening the mind to the reality of where clients are located today. Clients are at home or extended care facilities! Clients are not always admitted to hospitals! Think outside of the box and you will find a plethora of clinical sites for nursing students.

And, as far as limited classroom space, I wonder if anyone at the AACN has heard of the internet and online education. Yes I agree that classroom space might be needed for laboratory practice and group work however the traditional approach to classroom theory needs to change. Students can “attend class” at their own individual home computers. There are software applications and web hosting sites where students can interact, ask questions, and receive responses in “real time.” Limited classroom space? I’m sorry but I don’t agree with that excuse.

And as far as preparing nurses for the preceptor role, maybe this is a new direction that the nursing industry should invest time and energy. Instead of viewing the role of the preceptor as a “teacher wannabe,” this role should be encouraged, valued, and rewarded.

The nursing industry has many problems many of which will not be solved by those who continue to think and plan according to the past. The overall healthcare industry is entering a new age and nursing is going to be left in the dust unless someone in a position of power wakes up and redesigns the role and impact of nursing in our society and culture.

See you next week!

The average age of registered nurse in the United States today is 44.5 years. Nurses in their 50s are expected to become the largest segment of the nursing workforce, accounting for almost one quarter of the RN population. Yet, most of the nurses that I know who are in the age range of mid-40s to mid-50s say they don’t want to take care of patients anymore.

Does this mean that nurses within this age range are leaving the profession or rather are they disgruntled with direct patient care? Actually quite a few of the nurses that I know who have expressed dislike of direct patient care have left the bedside. What are they doing now? Most of them have become nurse managers or clinical trainers. The saddest part of this is that they don’t view their new positions as being in nursing anymore.

This leads up to the issue at hand: Why do people believe that a nurse is only someone who provides direct patient care? Where did this philosophy come from? And what does it have to do with the mythical nursing shortage of 2012?

Well, the locations for patient care are changing. Many treatments and procedures are being conducted in out-patient facilities or same day surgery centers. The number of hospital days per admission is down considerably. The need for “acute” care nurses to staff general medical-surgical areas is declining. But, the need for nurses in other care areas is on the rise. Nurses are needed in areas such as insurance companies, wellness clinics, ambulatory care centers, and public and community health.

The problem is, nurses who are more mature and want to leave the bedside for reasons such as declining health or more desirable work hours “don’t want to take care of patients anymore.” This is sad and what’s worse is that this behavior is permeating throughout the entire nursing profession. And it is my personal pet peeve.

As a clinical trainer for a disease management company a few years ago, I had met up with this “belief” by many experienced nurses. When asked why they accepted a position where they would be talking to patients over the telephone instead of directly providing care the overwhelming response was “I don’t want to take care of patients anymore.” Sorry but that was the wrong answer to the question. Patients at home oftentimes need more care and support than the fellow in the hospital bed.

I would like to know when the word patient became defined as “a person in a hospital bed.” Patients are everywhere! Just because the nurse delivers care through a telephone does not mean that nursing is not being provided! Just because a nurse is assessing the water and sewage supply of a community to ensure the community members have optimal clean drinking water does not mean that nursing care is not being provided.

The socialization of nursing has to change. The basic education for nurses is firmly rooted in the acute care setting. Many nurses have been trained with the understanding that unless employed in an acute care facility, you are “less than” a real nurse. This belief has to change if the profession is going to be prepared to face the changing healthcare demographic. And schools of nursing need to restructure curriculums to reflect the reality of healthcare settings today. In the meantime I will continue to argue with any nurse who “doesn’t want to take care of patients anymore.” My response will most likely be: “then why are you a nurse?”

See you next week!

In the past people who were sick would be admitted to a hospital. Hospitalizations would last for days or even weeks. Today that is not the case. Clients are being admitted to hospitals for hours and at most, a few days. The speed in which care is being provided prior to client discharge must be taken into consideration when preparing new nurses.

Traditionally, nursing students attend classroom theory and then participate in a clinical practice. It is the clinical practice where the student applies the content from the classroom theory. Oftentimes the theory and clinical practice do not match. The student is exposed quickly to this conflict between theory and practice and the experience can take one of three forms:

• Too easy or basic
• Right on target with the theory
• Too advanced for the theory

If the clinical experience is too basic, the student will be bored. If the clinical experience is too advanced, the student will be intimidated. Planning an experience that is in sync with the classroom theory is the best approach for learning. However the chance of this occurring is only 33%.

Having worked with a myriad of nursing students as a classroom theory instructor, clinical instructor, and staff development trainer, I believe nursing school clinical experiences need to be restructured. And this restructuring must correlate with the current healthcare environment.

The student needs to be exposed first to basic care. This care is provided in long-term care and skilled care facilities. This care is not provided in acute care facilities. Providing a clinical experience on a telemetry unit for a basic nursing student is ludicrous. The client is acutely ill and the student is capable of assessing vital signs and performing bed baths? Not a good match for the student at this level.

One location that would be appropriate for a beginning nursing student is ambulatory care clinics. This setting is often overlooked and under-identified. The clients are basically well with minor health ailments. The student can learn in this environment how to conduct a health history and perform a physical assessment. The environment is less stressful and the clients would appreciate extra attention provided by the student nurse.

If the clinical experiences for the beginning nursing student were structured utilizing extended care facilities and ambulatory care clinics, the theory and clinical experience would match. Acute care facility experience would need to wait until the student has been exposed to more acute care needs such as wounds, dressings, and intravenous fluids and medication therapies.

The “disconnect” between theory and clinical practice sets the tone for the remainder of the students’ learning. Once out of school the new graduate is skewed into thinking that the only place to be a “real nurse” is in an acute care facility. As the current healthcare environment continues to change, this belief is far from the truth.

Schools of nursing need to restructure clinical experiences to capitalize on where most of the clients will be located in the future: home, ambulatory care clinics, short-term rehabilitation, and extended and skilled care facilities. Of course nurses will continue to be needed for acute and critical care areas but these areas will shrink or continue to become more specialized.

Schools of nursing must realize that it is as important to teach a young client newly diagnosed with diabetes about diet and medication therapy as it is to monitor the balloon pump readings of a client recovering from a cardiac arterial bypass grafting procedure. Then the new nurse will be truly prepared to provide care to the vast majority of the population today.

The next blog will focus on the nurse who has been in the industry for many years and is tired of “providing care.” This should be interesting. See you then!

It seems like there’s been a nursing shortage every year that I’ve been a practicing nurse. Prior to the onset of the DRGs in the early 80s, there was a nursing shortage because clients weren’t being discharged out of acute care facilities quickly. Another shortage hit in the late 80s to mid 90s when the health maintenance organizations were ramping up and Medicare reimbursement for hospital services was being scrutinized. The latest nursing shortage is occurring now, or so “they” say, but I don’t see it. Do you? And who is “they?”

I think the term “nursing shortage” is being used as an excuse; an excuse to support an issue that is occurring in the industry which is the lack of experienced nurses in selected care areas. Students do not graduate from schools of nursing with experience in any care areas. Graduates have been exposed to a variety of settings where nursing care is provided and did not spend more than a few weeks in any particular care setting.

Once out of school, the graduate takes the NCLEX examination and then applies to different hospitals for employment. This is where it gets really interesting. The new RN is seeking employment to gain experience yet the hiring organization wants experience before a position is offered. A great Catch-22 for a profession claiming there is a “nursing shortage.”

What does the new RN do? Positions that are less than desirable are accepted such as working as a “charge” nurse in a skilled nursing facility or nursing home. The new nurse is thrown into a situation that he/she does not want to be however must take in order to gain “experience.” But this employment does not guarantee that future job searches will be more productive because there will always be the caveat of the “right kind” of experience.

I think the nursing shortage is actually one of perception. If working in a facility that has many openings then there is a “shortage” of nurses needed to provide the type of client-care offered in that facility. It cannot be used globally since there are many states and regions that are not experiencing a “shortage” of nurses. Actually some states had to lay off nurses over the holidays because of decreased numbers of clients. Those states and regions are not experiencing a nursing shortage.

The last issue about the “nursing shortage” has to do with the perceived shortage that will occur when the Baby Boomers start retiring from the workforce. A few web sites that are for practicing nurses discuss this issue periodically. The most recent discussion was between a seasoned nurse approaching retirement and a new nurse seeking employment. The new nurse was suggesting the older nurse retire now so as to “free up a job” for the new nurse. The older nurse was placed in the position of having to defend the right to keep the current job, regardless of any need that the new nurse might have for employment.

Considering the current economic climate and the recent events with personal investments, many older nurses are staying in the work force longer than what might have been originally planned. Retirement may not be an option for a few extra years into the future. Something else must be done to support the new nurses seeking employment in desired areas.

Next week’s blog will focus on the role of the schools of nursing in creating the current “nursing shortage” climate. They too play a part in this situation. See you then!