Nursing shortage fueled by teacher shortage

One of the biggest causes of the much-hyped coming nursing shortage is not the lack of interest in nursing, but rather the lack of room available in nursing schools to train those who are interested.

ABC News reports that more than 80,000 applicants are turned away from the nation’s nursing schools every year. Some of those aren’t accepted because of lack of teachers and resources.

The American Nurses Association (ANA) is currently working to help fund scholarships that will encourage nursing students and current nurses to go into teaching positions.

“On the one hand, we think that the position is getting better,” Pam Cipriano, president of the ANA, told ABC. “But on the other hand, we know it can take years before we can change the equation, before we have sufficient numbers of slots for those 80,000 candidates that are being turned away.”

Cipriano also said that the lack of available instructors comes at a time when many nursing schools feel the need to prepare more nurses for the nursing shortage.

“In addition to not having many student placements, and the retirement issue on the part of the faculty, the slowness at which we can prepare these nurses to serve as teachers has really come together at a time when we really want to increase the numbers, but we find that we are restrained,” she said.

Would you consider moving into a faculty position? Have you seen evidence of a nursing shortage? Do you think there will be one in the future? Let us know in the comments below!