A report issued by the Washington State Hospital Association recently warned that the scarcity of nurses, radiologists, pharmacists, and other health care workers is threatening the ability of the state's hospitals to provide good care.

The American Hospital Association estimates there are 126,000 vacant nursing positions at hospitals nationwide.

Across the state, the latest statistics show vacancy rates ranging from 2 percent in Eastern Washington to 10 percent in the Seattle area, where shortages are more acute. With approximately 1,000 nursing positions vacant, Washington ranks 32nd of 50 states in supply of nurses.

Washington State University produces the largest number of entry-level nurses in the state-160 each year. But last fall, the College of Nursing turned away more than half of its qualified applicants because it didn't have the state-funded FTE slots for them, or money for adequate faculty. The cost of educating a full-time nursing student for one year is approximately $18,000, higher than most other fields because of the clinical training required.

Unless the state finds a way to boost the number of nurses, its growing population will increasingly strain its health care system. Between 1980 and 2000, Washington's population grew by 42 percent and it is projected to grow another 27 percent by 2020. The over-65 population, which generally has more need for health care, is expected to grow 93 percent in the next two decades.
To compound the problem, the average age of practicing nurses in Washington is 45. A large portion of this workforce is expected to retire in coming years, but not enough new nurses are entering the field to replace them. Only 9 percent of Washington's nurses are in the 20- to 30-year age group.

"We recognize that the shortage we are seeing is only going to get worse," says College of Nursing dean Dorothy Detlor.
In recent years, changes in nursing workforce demographics haven't kept pace with general changes in society. Increased opportunities for women have prompted them to move into traditionally male-dominated areas such as medicine, pharmacy, and law. In turn, the pool of people who have traditionally been nurses has decreased, since women make up 94 percent of the workforce. No other groups are moving into the nursing field in large numbers to fill that void.

College of Nursing officials are actively trying to recruit more minorities and men into nursing, since both are significantly underrepresented. In fact, the college has more male students-16 percent-than the national average of 12 percent. Nationwide, fewer than six percent of registered nurse positions were held by men in 2000, compared to just under 9 percent in Washington.
Thanks to advanced technology and funding through the Medically Indigent Rural Area project, associate professor Michael Rice is training new nurses in rural areas like Sunnyside, Republic, Omak, and Colville through distance education. The program allows those who might be place-bound by economic constraints or family obligations to pursue a nursing degree in their own community.

The college recently received a $1.5 million endowed gift to support Yakima-area Native American students, as well as a $450,000 federal grant to recruit Hispanic students. It also holds an annual summer institute for Native American students, in hopes of enticing them into the field.

"What we are trying to do is help students realize the range of career opportunities in nursing," Detlor says.

     To find out more
     information on career
     opportunities in
     nursing, visit the
     College of Nursing.