Graduates fight odds to become nurses

(University of Buffalo) Jacob Madonia and My Lan N. Le crossed the stage at the School of Nursing commencement on May 12 to get their diplomas in the last leg of a marathon whose finish line must have seemed, at times, impossible to cross.

Both received bachelor’s degrees in nursing, both plan to go back to school to get their Doctor of Nursing Practice degrees, both can’t see themselves in any other profession and both struggled with adversity. But their stories couldn’t be more different.

Madonia came to UB on a sports scholarship—he was a discus thrower and shot putter; when you see him in person, he looks like the athlete his is. To use a cliché, he is the picture of health. It’s hard to believe that he had a small section of his upper right lung removed just three weeks ago. [Read more...]

South Carolina Colleges Say Nurse Training Programs Are Full, New Nursing School May Open

(WSPA) An Upstate university got one step closer Thursday to starting a nursing school. 7 On Your Side found out other local colleges say there’s a demand for more nurse training in the Upstate.

Anderson University received approval today from the South Carolina Board of Nursing to begin a nursing school. The university still needs the approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Other colleges tell 7 On Your Side there is a big demand for nurse training. Christi Corder just started doing clinical rounds in her second semester at Tri-County Technical College. Corder says, “You get a patient each week, and you have to make a care plan for them.”  [Read more...]

Nurses playing crucial role in American health care

(PennLive) The Issue: National Nurses Week was last week.

Our Opinion: The community should take a moment to salute its nurses, who are an integral part of health care both in and outside of hospitals.

We would have to look long and hard to find someone in Berks County who has not been cared for by a nurse, a nurse practitioner or a licensed practical nurse at some point in life. [Read more...]

Despite projected demand for nurses, jobs hard to find

(Post Bulletin) There has been a steady steam of reports predicting a dearth of nurses in the coming years. One recent forecast from The American College of Medical Quality projects a national shortage of 300,000 to 1 million nurses in 2020.

So when Marc Anders decided to switch careers from bartending to nursing, he thought he would have it made.

“There was a perception that you could go into the job and kind of call your shots,” said Anders, 42. “I could go in, pick my hours, see how many days I want to work, get benefits, not work weekends and go where I wanted to go.” [Read more...]

New York nurses shift to union-style format

(Crain’s New York Business) Following a leadership shakeup last fall, members of the 37,000-member New York State Nurses Association voted overwhelmingly Thursday to approve bylaw changes that will transform the organization from a professional association into a more traditional labor union.

Members opted Thursday to give more power to elected leaders to set the course of the union; to ban supervisors from serving as union leaders; and to replace the position of CEO with an executive director.

The association traditionally had a board that included supervisors, which limited its ability to discuss union issues. A delegate assembly made up of non-supervisory nurses had only an advisory role. [Read more...]

Nurse leaders push for strong teamwork to improve care

(Fierce Healthcare) As new delivery models call for collaboration across the healthcare continuum, the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) and the American Nurses Association (ANA) last week issued principles to improve teamwork between clinical nurses and nurse managers.

The principles offer guidance on effective communication, authentic relationships, and learning environment and culture, which often lead to better workplace culture and patient outcomes. For example, the organizations recommend engaging in active listening, giving accurate information and speaking directly to the person involved to appropriately convey information. [Read more...]

California Nursing grads face tough job market: 43 percent can’t find work, according to state survey

(MercuryNews.com) New nursing graduates are finding their chosen profession is not as recession-proof as they had expected. Yet Cabrillo College and others offering training for would-be nurses are being advised not to cut back on their programs.

A survey last fall of nearly 1,500 California newly licensed registered nurses found 43 percent did not have a nursing job 18 months after graduating, according to the California Institute for Nursing and Health Care.

According to the nurses who were not working, 92 percent said they were told they did not have enough experience, 54 percent told no jobs were available and 42 percent told a bachelor’s degree was preferred or required. About 80 percent said they would be willing to participate in an unpaid internship to get experience. [Read more...]

As boomers age, need for nurses increases

(Chicago Sun Times) Yvonne Yacoub has been a nurse for half a century.

In 50 years, she has seen her profession redefine itself to meet the challenges of change, yet continue to struggle with shortages of new practitioners.

Yacoub, 72, is decades older than the 46-year-old average age of employed registered nurses. Some veteran nurses continue to work, but many more have hung up the scrubs for good or are counting the days until retirement. [Read more...]

Nurse shortage? Not at South Dakota State

(Brookings Register) South Dakota State University graduated 251 nursing students at various levels in Brookings and Rapid City May 5.

Two days before graduation, Sioux Falls-based Sanford Health recognized College of Nursing administrators Roberta Olson and Sandra Bunkers for their education and production of registered nurses for the region’s largest health-care provider.

The May 3 nurse appreciation ceremony at the Washington Pavilion saw more than 50 nurses honored in various categories. [Read more...]

Aging population leads Minnesota nurses back to school

(MPR News) Minnesota’s population is getting older, and that’s changing the way nurses think about their education.

Nursing schools have historically trained nurses to work at the bedside, in hospitals. But the rapidly aging population means more nurses are delivering care to patients outside of traditional hospital settings. Students are looking beyond two-year-nursing programs to learn more about physical therapy, treatment management and psychological care while pursing a bachelor’s degree. [Read more...]