Posted in Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs
There was a large protest in Chicago today, coinciding with the NATO meeting there, designed to draw attention to a proposed tax that has been dubbed the “Robin Hood tax.” It would be a .5 percent tax on banks’ transactions, with the money going to help cover the uninsured. Such a tax would yield about $350 billion, according to this article in the Chicago Sun-Times. The article profiles a nurse named Jan Rodolfo, who became committed to the cause of…
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Posted in Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Shortage, Nursing Specialties
This article in the Chicago Tribune looks at pediatric nursing — the benefits, the drawbacks, and some pointers on how to pursue the specialty if it is something that interests you. People who are drawn to pediatric nursing often cite the opportunities for a more personal touch than other types of nursing, with a much smaller nurse-to-patient ratio. While a hospital nurse is typically responsible for 15 to 20 patients at a time, a pediatric nurse is often responsible for…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Shortage, Nursing Specialties, Technology
The average age of nurses is currently 46, according to this article in USA Today. Many baby boomers have retired or will be in the next decade or so. Nursing is a very physical job, and the requirements of the job such as lifting patients and standing for long periods can become too much for many older nurses. New nurses are filling the breach and there are regional variations for the nursing shortage — there are too many nurses in…
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Posted in Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News
It’s time to celebrate nurses and all that they do. It’s National Nurses week! The week runs from May 6th through May 12th, which is the birthday of the founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale. National Nurses Week seeks to highlight the many contributions made by nurses. They work tirelessly to help people of all ages, backgrounds, and medical conditions. Nurses can be found throughout hospitals, but also can be found in various community settings such as homeless shelters and…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing School, Nursing Specialties
United States Military nurses serve the healthcare needs of both military and civilian populations throughout the world. In fact, according to the Military Health System (MHS), military nurses must be prepared to carry out the mission of the MHS “to respond anytime, anywhere with comprehensive medical capability to military operations, natural disasters, and humanitarian causes around the globe, and to ensure delivery of world-class healthcare to all Department of Defense service members, retirees and families.” As the number of patients…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Shortage, Nursing Specialties
One thing that has become clear is that there are regional trends in nursing jobs. For every article that says that the nursing shortage is over, I’ve found another one that mentions a specific region that is feeling the crunch. In this story for the Mankato, Minnesota Fox network, the nursing shortage in southern Minnesota is examined. Right now there is a high demand for certain health care positions in particular, such as LPNs and CMA’s. They predict a “huge”…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Shortage
Young people are deciding that they want to go into nursing in record numbers. There was a 62% increase in the number of nurses ages 23 to 26 entering the field between 2002 and 2009. And there are waiting lists at many nursing schools full of more qualified and enthusiastic young applicants. This article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution points to federal support for nursing workforce development, nurse recruitment campaigns, and larger nursing education programs at colleges and universities as some…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage
As nursing continues to be a strong profession, more and more people are turning to nursing for the first time in middle age. Some of them get into it after they’ve been fired from non-nursing jobs. Others are re-entering the workforce after a period of being stay-at-home moms, or just want to change professions for altruistic reasons. At Heartland Community College in Normal, Indiana, all 40 members of the class that will graduate on May 18th are non-traditional students. This…
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Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage
Perhaps more California nurses should consider moving to Alaska? While Alaska is seeing a shortage of nurses (at least in specialized fields), many recent California nursing school graduates are having a hard time finding a job. A survey of newly licensed (within the previous 18 months) RNs conducted by the California Institute for Nursing & Health Care (CINHC) has found that 43% of them were still looking for their first job. A press release from CINHC states that the study…
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Posted in Hospitals, Nurse Safety, Nursing, Nursing News, Nursing Specialties
It’s not all bad on the night shift. Night shift nurses don’t have to deal with visitors, doctors or supervisors, and have fewer interruptions. The night hours may work best for a nurse’s family situation as well. But could working at night, when 80 percent of the world sleeps, actually be hazardous to a nurse’s health? The International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that the disruption of the natural circadian rhythms that happens with night shift work is…
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