A boom in nursing care, as record numbers hit retirement age, and a clinical emphasis on preventive care, help spawn thousands of jobs within the nursing profession – including nurse specialists and therapists.

Healthcare jobs projected to increase most in coming years include many in the nursing profession: registered nurses (RNs), nursing aides, licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses, reports The Bureau of Labor.

The outlook for healthcare jobs is positive according to Labor. Healthcare jobs continue to outpace employment sectors manufacturing and construction and are expected to number 344,000 by year’s end, a level of growth not seen in four years.

There is much hope for nursing professionals seeking jobs.

To learn more of my nurse recruitment and nurse retention strategies and/or to have me speak at your facility to improve morale, retention and recruitment, contact me.

“It looks like healthcare is back in business,” Bacurin said. “The demand for ambulatory nurse jobs has skyrocketed and almost half of all jobs created in September went to healthcare.”

Bureau of Labor numbers confirm what Bacurin says. Hospital job growth in the first nine months of 2011 is four times what it was in all of 2010. Moreover, 42 percent of new jobs last month were healthcare jobs.

There is much hope for nurses looking for jobs as nurse recruitment increases.
To learn more of my nurse recruitment and retention strategies and/or to have me speak at your facility to increase morale, retention and recruitment, contact me.

121,000 new job ads for Registered Nurses were posted by employers and staffing agencies in May, up 46% from May last year, according to Wanted Analytics. About 10% were ads placed for positions at hospitals, where turnover rates for RNs average 14%. Last April the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that “the health care industry added 428,000 jobs throughout the 18-month recession from December 2007 until June 2009, and has continued to grow at a steady rate since the end of the recession.” As the largest of the healthcare workforce, RNs were recruited to fill many of these new positions.

• Sometimes in these challenging times, when it is hard to believe that the recession is “over,” it’s hard to acknowledge the positive information regarding nurse recruitment. But things are getting better. Hospitals are hiring. There is hope.Spread the word.

To learn more of my nurse recruitment and retention strategies and/or to have me speak at our facility to increase morale, retention and recruitment, contact me.

2009 Mercer study reports 34% of companies with 500 employees or more offer healthcare onsite or near their facility. As a result, workers maintain better overall health, and each company sees an increase in productivity with a decrease in healthcare costs.

The American Journal for Preventative Medicine reports that employers can see a return of $3 to $6 for each dollar spent over two to five years on employee health strategies.

Employee health screening show that disease management is working. The employees’ cholesterol levels are down, blood sugar levels in diabetics improve and employees are healthier overall. There is also a reduction in the overall cost for providing employee health care. Some report a 20 percent reduction in overall health insurance costs per employee.

Do you have an employee wellness program at your facility? How can you add or improve it to care for your staff and retain them?

To learn more about how to care for, recruit, and retain your staff, contact me.

Washington state, like many others, is approaching its worst nursing shortage ever, in hospitals, medical office, long-term care facilities and schools.

Although some nurses are having trouble finding the jobs want, there are 2,300 registered nursing vacancies in Washington. As the economy improves, nurses who’ve delayed retirement will leave the workforce. Health care reform will make health care available to almost 300,000 more people in Washington just as baby boomers become eligible for Medicare. These changes mean higher demand for nurses.

Forward thinking people in that state include the Washington Center for Nursing. They submitted the Master Plan for Nursing Education to the Washington State Department of Health to transform nursing education in that state, based on extensive research conducted statewide with nurses, nurse educators and professionals.

Offering solutions, proposals in the Master Plan include increasing the ability of nurses and nursing students to pursue their educations. Other proposals ideas to deal with the shortage of faculty include raising salaries, diversifying faculty recruitment efforts, promoting mentoring, and providing additional teaching resources to new faculty.

If nothing changes by 2020, 30,000 registered nurse openings are expected. To meet this demand, graduation rates would need to increase by 400 per year, every year for 15 years.

How many nurses does your organization need today? How many more by 2020? How many nursing students are your colleges graduating?Do you have a Master Plan?

To learn more strategies to recruit the nurses you need today and in the future, contact me. Let’s plan the future together.

The money will support nursing workforce development and education programs, as well as geriatric education and training programs.

The grants, issued under the Health Resources and Services Administration were a part of the Affordable Care Act, signed into law by President Obama last March.

I’m eager to learn what other states received grant money, as this is a crucial step in recruiting nurses and ending our nursing shortage.

To learn more tools for nurse recruitment and retention, contact me to speak at your event or hospital.

Indeed, where once nursing grads could essentially write their own ticket and choose from several attractive job opportunities, some looking to enter our profession have had to settle for a position different from their goals.

Wise new grads will take this job, giving the best care possible as team player. When the recession ends and cut backs are eased, they can transfer into their position of choice.

Can I help you recruit the nurses you need and retain your new grads? Please contact me.

Their commitment to caring for their staff so remarkable, they gifted each nurse with a copy of my book, Balancing Life in Your ‘War Zones’, a Guide to Physical, Mental and Spiritual Health. The area TV news was impressed with their caring strategy and this great nurse retention tool.

Contact me …I’d love to help your hospital show your commitment to your nurses and their life balance too.