Hospitals are faced with a fresh challenge. On one hand, they promote career development programs to support and retain their nursing staff. On the other, these very initiatives are inadvertently pushing more nurses away from direct patient care. With the retirement of experienced nurses and younger nurses gravitating towards leadership or advanced practice roles, hospitals are grappling to fill the consequent gaps in front-line patient care.
Timothy Carrigan, a regional Chief Nursing Officer, highlights the need for strong engagement at the bedside, questioning whether the focus on advanced education may have been overzealously applied. Yet, hospitals are committed to backing nurses in their professional advancements, helping them acquire master’s and doctorates, which expands their career horizons and enhances patient care.
Younger nurses’ emphasis on work-life balance also plays a role, with many preferring 12-hour shifts which allow time for other pursuits, frequently further education. While this may contribute to a deficit in bedside nurses, it also creates a scenario benefiting public health and hospital operations as many of these nurses often return as Nurse Practitioners (NPs), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs), or educators. This underlines the importance of advanced nursing practice in today’s healthcare scenario.
Career growth plans form a critical part of many retention strategies. By identifying nurses’ goals early, hospitals can provide support in the form of tuition reimbursement and mentorship, ensuring the talent stays within the organization. Furthermore, educational aspirations have also evolved. Previously a bachelor’s degree in nursing was often considered the ultimate goal, but new generations see it merely as their professional starting point.
Evidence of this trend can be seen in the increase of students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees in nursing. The most coveted roles being pursued currently are certified registered nurse anesthetist and nurse practitioner for family or behavioral health, and the most popular degrees being sought after include degrees related to management or advanced research in nursing. Some systems have undertaken targeted programs with universities on specific roles that are urgently needed in the workforce.
In addition to this, hospitals are offering a plethora of benefits to back nurses acquiring higher degrees such as online learning, tuition reimbursement, loan forgiveness, flexible schedules, and even tuition subsidies for clinical teachers. Nonetheless, the issue on how to maintain experienced nurses in direct patient care while inviting new entrants into the profession remains an unresolved enigma.