Survey: Over 40 Percent of Nurses to Alter Career Path
04 2월 2010 - 12:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
28 Percent Say They Will Not Be in Their Current Job 1 Year from
Now SAN DIEGO, Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nearly one-third of
registered nurses (RNs) surveyed last month say they will not be
working in their current job a year from now and close to half say
they plan to alter their career path in the next one to three years
in a way that would either take them out of the nursing field
entirely or reduce their contribution to direct patient care by
working fewer hours or choosing a less demanding role. Driving part
of the decision to potentially change career paths or jobs is the
fact that nearly half of those surveyed say their job is affecting
their health. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100111/LA35461LOGO) These are
among key findings from the 2010 Survey of Registered Nurses: Job
Satisfaction and Career Plans, conducted by AMN Healthcare
(NYSE:AHS), the nation's leading provider of comprehensive
healthcare staffing and management services. The survey, which
collected data from 1,399 respondents, was conducted during a
period of economic recession and in the course of an ongoing
national debate over healthcare reform. The survey reflects how RNs
may have altered their career plans due to the recession, how they
might respond to an economic recovery, and highlights whether they
believe healthcare reform will address the nurse shortage. On the
healthcare reform issue, only 6 percent of the respondents are very
confident that reform will provide a mechanism for ensuring an
adequate supply of nurses. This at a time when industry data
indicates the nation will face a shortage of 260,000 RNs by 2025,
and Bureau of Labor Statistics shortage numbers are even higher.
"Our survey clearly indicates significant job dissatisfaction and
that is concerning in terms of quality healthcare delivery," said
Ralph Henderson, AMN Healthcare's Nursing and Allied Division
President. "Nurses are at the core of quality care in our nation's
delivery system and if we see large numbers of nurses leaving the
profession it could negatively impact patient care outcomes." In
fact, the majority of nurses (55 percent) believe that the quality
of care nurses provide today has declined compared to five years
ago, according to the survey. The survey notes that 29 percent of
nurses plan to take steps in the next one to three years that would
reduce their role or take them out of nursing altogether. An
additional 15 percent say they will also make a change in their
career path, like becoming a travel nurse or nurse practitioner.
However, while the survey highlights dissatisfaction with their
current job, most nurses are satisfied with their careers overall,
yet 59 percent would select nursing as a career if they had it to
do it all over, and only 64 percent would recommend nursing as a
career to young people. "While nursing has made tremendous strides
as a profession, in terms of pay and prestige, staffing shortages
remain the profession's greatest challenge," notes Henderson. Of
immediate concern, he says, is that 6 percent of nurses permanently
employed in a hospital setting indicate they plan to retire in the
next one to three years. This action would reduce the hospital
nursing workforce by more than 70,000. This is of particular
concern, since the number of new candidates taking the National
Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) to become a registered nurse
has flattened over the last year, suggesting no growth in the
supply of new nurses entering the profession. "It is critical that
we find ways to keep experienced nurses engaged in patient care and
attract new nurses to the workforce," Henderson says. These two
things combined will help mitigate the impact of the nation's
growing nurse shortage, he observes. A complete breakdown of AMN's
2010 Survey of Registered Nurses: Job Satisfaction and Career Plans
is available at http://www.amnhealthcare.com/. About AMN Healthcare
AMN Healthcare Services, Inc. is the nation's leading provider of
comprehensive healthcare staffing and management services. As a
leading provider of travel nurse and allied staffing services,
locum tenens (temporary physician staffing) and physician permanent
placement services, AMN Healthcare recruits and places healthcare
professionals on assignments of variable lengths and in permanent
positions with clients throughout the United States, who range from
acute-care hospitals and physician practice groups to other
healthcare settings, including rehabilitation centers, dialysis
clinics, pharmacies, home health service providers and ambulatory
surgery centers. For more information, visit
http://www.amnhealthcare.com/.
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100111/LA35461LOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: AMN Healthcare Services,
Inc. CONTACT: Don Cowan of AMN Healthcare, 1-866-756-6635, Web
Site: http://www.amnhealthcare.com/
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