Are Most Nurses Poorly Paid - Research Paper Example

 Are Most Nurses Poorly Paid? Nursing is a course that does not guarantee an unwavering career after graduation. Most people take a nursing degree thinking that it will one day help them achieve stability. Certainly, health industry is one trade that will never run out. People will incessantly be in need of health experts. It is said that hoteliers may one day lose their jobs due to global recessions but medical professionals will never be out of work. However, scarcity of nursing jobs is not the major issue. Undeniably, there is a demand for nurses worldwide. In fact, reports show that the need for nurses is no longer corresponding with the total of licensed professionals in various parts of the world, particularly in the United States. Smith wrote, ‘The United States is in the midst of a major healthcare challenge: A dearth of registered nurses is mounting as aging baby boomers are requiring more care. The nursing population, according to Salmon, is "an equation that is failing," with mainly "white, middle- 2 class, middle-aged women" who don't represent demographic trends. The average age of a registered nurse has increased from 40 to 47 since 1980, she said. Less than 10 percent of nurses are under 30. ‘The nursing shortage is a multifaceted problem. And it’s one that represents the convergence of a variety of healthcare ills, according to Dr. Arthur Kellermann, chairman of the department of emergency medicine at Emory. Kellermann said the nursing deficit is, in part, the result of overcrowded emergency rooms and escalating levels of uninsured patients. Statistics quantifying the problem are bleak. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN): ‘ Based on finding from the Nursing Management Aging Workforce Survey released in July 2006 by the Bernard Hodes Group, 55 percent of surveyed nurses reported their intention to retire between 2011 and 2020. The majority of those surveyed were nurse managers. In April 2006, officials with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) released projections that all 50 states will experience a shortage of nurses to varying degrees by the year 2015. 3 According to a report released by the American Hospital Association in April 2006, U.S. hospitals need approximately 118,000 RNs to fill vacant positions nationwide. This translates into a national RN vacancy rate of 8.5 percent. The report, titled The State of America's Hospitals - Taking the Pulse, also found that 49 percent of hospital CEOs had more difficulty recruiting RNs in 2005 than in 2004. ‘The healthcare industry is going to serious lengths to meet the nursing shortage. Many hospitals and healthcare systems have been recruiting nurses from outside the United States. In fact, Congress is considering a special visa program for foreign-born nurses in an immigration bill this year. The United States is already the world’s biggest importer of nurses, hiring most of its overseas nurses from the Philippines.’ Therefore, as mentioned, nursing is evidently a job that is of high demand. Nevertheless, despite its demand, several nursing graduates are forced to accept salaries that are not actually suitable to their professions for numbers of reasons. A nursing job is not easy, ‘Registered nurses (RNs) work to promote good health and prevent illness. They educate patients and the public about various medical conditions; treat patients and help in their rehabilitation; and provide advice and emotional support to patients' families. RNs use considerable judgment in providing a wide variety of services.’ (StateUniversity.com). 4 ‘The title of Nurse has many applications in modern medicine. Each specific type of nurse has a different set of responsibilities: Registered nurses (RNs), Nurse practitioners, Head nurses or nurse supervisors, Licensed practical nurses (LPNs), Nursing home nurses, Home health nurses, and Nursing aides. While there are many shared tasks, these nursing professions require special skills, and different levels of patient interactions.’ (Studentdoc.com). Indeed, there are countless jobs for nurses. Problem arises since people cannot possibly accept a rate that is not agreeable, and given that hospitals have found the option of hiring skilled nurses at lower costs---it is, of course, not negotiable. Ruggles stated, “So much has been made of the nursing shortage that a dearth of an equally important kind -- nursing teachers -- has received little attention. "There's a shortage of faculty, there's a shortage of nurses," said Marla Erbin-Roesemann, interim dean of nursing at Clarkson College in Omaha.” "It's actually a circular type of pattern. Many nursing experts say the situation could grow dire, particularly in rural areas, as teachers begin to retire within five years.” The raised demand for nurses has not change the propositions. It had been expected, that due to scarcity, deals would be better. Then again, hospitals continuously coordinate with recruitment agencies which incessantly send trained nurses from their countries. The demand may be high, but it is focused on countries, or areas that accept lower compensations. Still, nurses have to bear the fact that others are being prioritized. It is a company’s way of cutting costs, which to a great extent, affects the resident or local professionals. Nonetheless, it is a legal, and officially permitted means of financial prudence, which they cannot possibly argue with. Payscale illustrated the latest researched rate for nurses based on years of experience: ‘Hourly Rate Survey Report for Job: Nurse Operating Room’ Median Hourly Rate by Years Experience - Job: Nurse Operating Room (United States) 6 There are numerous reasons why nurses refuse to accept unacceptable job offers. People cannot possibly compromise what they can give. It is also true that the productivity of workers are, in some ways, affected when they are not satisfied with their salaries, or when they feel that they are not fairly compensated. One’s cost of living may not even be covered by the remuneration being offered. It might be argued that a person’s lifestyle greatly affects his disbursements; then again, when one is aware of his capabilities, and he feels that he deserves better compensation, he might not be working effectively. The idea of bringing in competent nurses from other countries, wherein dollars can be converted at higher exchange rates---is one of the major reasons why nurses, despite the fact that it is a crucial profession---are not assured of employment. Nurses who were hired from different countries, specifically from the Philippines, are just as proficient, hardworking, and capable. These people can fluently speak and write the English language, and can efficiently perform tasks as other nurses—at lower charges. Professionals continuously come to the United States and leave their families to work as professional nurses for several practical reasons. Numbers of benefits are gained through overseas jobs. They are given Cost of Living Allowances, free accommodation, and in some cases---free tickets for vacation. (Traber, et al) ‘If the expatriate is paid the full salary in the home country currency, every month he/she will have to convert that salary or at least the 7 purchasing power part (spendable income + COLA) into the host currency, thus carrying the direct currency fluctuation risk.’   ‘If the company pays the full salary in the host currency, the purchasing power is guaranteed and the expatriate is protected against currency fluctuation, thus no further action is needed. In this case there will only be a currency fluctuation impact when the employee wishes to send a portion of the salary back to the home country.’   ‘If the company is applying a split payment (spendable income with Cost of Living Allowance paid in host country currency and savings component paid in home country currency), the expatriate will not experience any currency fluctuations as the spendable income part will be received and spent directly in the host country currency. Adjusting spendable income with a COLA protects the expatriate against currency fluctuations of the COL index and thus guarantees stable purchasing power in the host country..’ Evidently, when the worker is from a place where the dollar rate is relatively higher, his services can also be offered at a lower rate, especially when he gets allowances and free accommodations. 8 Indeed, nursing is a degree that calls for tedious and extensive training yet, it cannot truly ensure an established job in the future. But then, a person’s stability can also depend on him, it is how he handles financial and profession anxiety, and how he tries to resolve it. Works Cited Payscale, 21 March 2009, Hourly Rate Survey Report:Nurse Operating Room. 24 March 2009 . Ruggles, Rick, 28 Oct. 2007, Nurse Scarcity Aggravated by Dearth of Nebraska Teachers to Train Them. 24 March 2009, . Smith, Gerry, 26, April 2007, Emory Dean Warns of Nursing Shortage as Boomers Age, More Care Needed. 24 March 2009, . StateUniversity.com, 24 March 2009 . Studentdoc.com, The Many Faces of the Professional Nurse. 24 March 2009 . Traber, Yvonne, et al, 21 July 2008, How Important is the Cost of Living Allowance Revision? 24 March 2009 < http://www.mercer.com/referencecontent.htm?idContent=1313565>. Read More