New Research Calls for Optimism in Reducing the Shortage of Nurses

Health economists at RAND Health in Boston have been tracking the statistics on the nursing workforce in the United States for 35 years. While previous studies had all pointed to a looming severe shortage of nurses, these latest findings call for optimism!
The study published in the latest isssue of 'Health Affairs' appears to have surprised even the researchers themselves. The swing has evidently resulted from a number of factors that have thankfully drawn more young adults to the profession.

"...the number of people 23 to 26 years of age entering nursing increased by 62% from 2002 to 2009."

Click on the post title for the RAND press release, or the 'Health Affairs' link to purchase the full text report. This story is also discussed in Medscape: "Record Numbers Entering Nursing, But Gaps Remain" by Troy Brown [ Medscape Medical News Today, December 5, 2011 ]

"Good Morning, my name is Elizabeth, and how are we feeling today?"

Technology Review published by MIT brings us research news by Emily Singer [1/11/2011].

Take a look at what MIT and Northeastern University have been up to. They have created Elizabeth ~ a personable, caring and sympathetic virtual nurse! Click on the post title to read, listen or watch the full story.

But what can real nurses learn from this experiment you may ask? That their jobs are in jeopardy? No ~ but take note of these observations...

"patients who interacted with a virtual nurse named Elizabeth said they preferred the computer simulation to an actual doctor or nurse because they didn't feel rushed or talked down to."

"Patients more accurately reported their health information when interacting with the virtual character than they were when filling out a standard electronic questionnaire."

Researchers explain ~ Such technologies will become increasingly important with rising health-care costs and an aging population.

"We already know we don't have enough health-care providers to go around, and it's only getting worse,"..."About 60 percent of the cost of delivering health care comes from human resources, so even if you can train more people, it's not an ideal way to improve costs."

The Nursing License Map

"The Nursing License Map is a comprehensive resource for nursing licensure information. It provides state-specific information on how to become a nurse, nurse salaries, nursing credentials, nurse certification tests, and nursing compact agreements. Our aim is to provide all the information necessary to become a nurse no matter where you live."
The quick state-by-state overview of nursing salaries is great too!
by Nursing@Georgetown.

Nursing Reference Center Mobile App.'s

Convenient mobile application versions for EBSCO's Nursing Reference Center (NRC) are now available via the iTunes App.'s Store.

Challenging Times for the UK Nursing Labour Force

The Royal College of Nursing in the United Kingdom has published a preliminary report outlining eight 'what if' scenarios and projecting their possible impact on the nursing labour force in the UK over the next decade.

"This [report] looks at the challenges facing nursing and the nursing workforce across the UK in 2011 which we believe are the greatest for a generation....this report highlights what the truly shocking scale of losses could be in the near future – in the worst case – a 28 per cent reduction in the nursing workforce [100,000 positions]. This would undoubtedly be hugely damaging to the quality of patient care....As an immediate first step, we [RCN] advocate that the supply of registered nurses should be stabilised and the decision to cut nursing student places by 10 per cent for 2010/11 to 2011/12 reversed."

This interim report is taken from the forthcoming Royal College of Nursing Labour Market Review (LMR) 2011.

Global Nursing in Action: An Inspiring Alumni Story

Alex, your story really highlights the opportunities that are out there for those who are moved to answer the call to be a nurse. Here at IUON on St. Kitts we enjoyed having you in our student body! Now your story will serve to inspire many others to pursue their dream and perserver with their goals, to serve the global community as dedicated nurses. Way to go Alex! Here is an excerpt from Alex's story posted on IUON's offical website:

"During times of emergency Alex grew to appreciate how valuable someone with health care knowledge is because people depend on you, '…not just for patching up their wounds, but to be there for re-assurance during crisis. Just letting them know that someone is there…and that someone wants to help. It’s a complicated task because it’s possibly the worst day they’ve ever experienced and you’re the one that’s there to work together to make them as well as they can be again. I felt a great pride in this and I felt the calling.' ”

Alex Champagne is an International University of Nursing (IUON) student who is completing his senior year at one of IUON’s partner schools in Kentucky, Morehead State University (MSU).
As a trained nurse the world is truely your oyster!

UPDATE: Read more about Alex's story in the Huron Daily Tribune, July 14, 2011.

NLN 2010 Statistics on Nursing Education

The National League for Nursing has released their latest research statistics on the state of nursing education in the United States.

"New findings gleaned from the National League for Nursing's annual survey, administered from October to December 2010, paint a complex picture of nursing education in the United States."

"NLN Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing 2009-2010" includes findings such as: an increase in student diversity, acceptance to programs remains very competitive, continued lack of clinical placements available, and continued shortage of faculty.

Visit NLN DataView™ for a comprehensive set of tables and figures, or read the NLN Annual Survey Executive Summary.

The Communication Solution for the Nursing Industry

The Nurses Lounge is an online profesional network for nurses which provides a secure place to connect with colleagues, network on a professional level, and stay on top of relevant news, events and other information.
Nursing Schools can benfit by setting up their own "Lounge" which provides them a professional platform to easily distribute news and information, build and manage an alumni organization, as well as network among their students, faculty and alumni. There is no cost to a nurse, nursing school or nursing related association to use or set up an interactive Nurses Lounge.
Click to learn more about the Nurses Lounge.

Health Literacy Online CME Course

Health Literacy, You talk to your patients, but do they understand? The importance of Health Literacy to your Practice.

This new Health Literacy CME course on the MDcme.ca website is open access thanks to grants from various Canadian organizations. The online course geared to physicians and other healthcare professions, will

"introduce you to the concept of health literacy. It will give an overview of current knowledge about the links between literacy and health outcomes. The goal is to help you understand how health literacy affects your own practice or work setting. It will introduce some practical tools and strategies to identify and address the health literacy needs of your patients/clients, and the barriers that you may inadvertently create to patient/client understanding."

Registration is required.

Evidence-Based Practice Step by Step

The American Journal of Nursing has been publishing this series of articles on evidence-based practice periodically for over a year now. To date there are a total of 8 articles in this collection from the Arizona State University College of Nursing and Health Innovation's Center for the Advancement of Evidence-Based Practice.

"Evidence-based practice (EBP) is a problem-solving approach to the delivery of health care that integrates the best evidence from studies and patient care data with clinician expertise and patient preferences and values. When delivered in a context of caring and in a supportive organizational culture, the highest quality of care and best patient outcomes can be achieved."

This series is designed and presented with the intent of developing the knowledge and skills needed for nurses to implement EBP consistently, one step at a time. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has a stated goal that by 2020, 90% of all health care decisions in the United States will be evidence-based. In order to accomplish this goal, nurses will need to continually improve and consistently apply their skills in this area.