Brain Drain in Louisiana - Assignment Example

Of grave concern, then, was the emigration of those with scarce professional skills, like Doctors, Nurses, Engineers, etc, who had been trained at considerable expense, in most cases, by means of highly subsidized tertiary educations or Government grants. (Cohen 1). The mere fact of the weak and poor society losing skilled people is a terrible occurrence. It plunges society into a far deeper economic situation. The implications for the poor sending communities, is, therefore, stark. (Dhananjayan 2).

The factor driving brain drain emigration is not far fetched. Human nature always tends towards better and more secure living conditions. Wherever such condition is not obtainable in a community, there is bound to be moved outwards, in search of a better environment. It is obvious, therefore, that inequalities in opportunities available to different societies or nations, is one primary factor at the root of brain drain emigration. Several decades back, 'brain drain' was a name reserved for citizens of poor developing nations moving into America and Europe.

A US presidential candidate, Ross Perot, even once talked about a "giant sucking sound" made as American jobs went out to emigrants (Dhananjayan 2), but America seems to be having her own share of the phenomenon within its shores. According to a story on CBS News, Williams Frey, a demographer at the University of Michigan, studied population migration in Louisiana, long before Hurricane Katrina. He concluded that Louisiana has basically been a poster child for brain drain, especially among whites with college degrees (Katrina Accelerates).

Brain drain has been seen as a growing trend in New Orleans and Louisiana over several decades now. It is observed that the opposite of the growth trends seen elsewhere in the New South is the case in Louisiana. The loss of skilled labor power began decades back, in the late 1980s, when, probably due to dwindling image outside, Louisiana keep failing to attract new residents. Basically, the Louisiana problem could be said to be due to a failing economy, unhealthy image and the resultant failure to attract the in-migration of new residents (Katrina Accelerates).

The economy of the city is already on a downward turn and its image battered, losing several of her best-educated residents could lead to a vicious cycle. It definitely would further damage the 'sick' economy, tear the city's social fabric apart, and thus further creating a better excuse for the few, staying back, to emigrate and keeping new residents at bay. Brain drain sure does have a resounding effect, it takes away the good ones from a society, cutting out ideas and growth from the few ones left.

Hurricane Katrina has further added to this scourge. According to experts, the health care industry was one of the very few industries experiencing growth in Louisiana and also the number one employer in the city. But, Hurricane Katrina almost obliterated the hospital, nursing homes, mental health systems, and other health care institutions in the whole of New Orleans. These institutions employ thousands of people and many of them are already migrating for better opportunities. In the wake of Katrina, several competitors have been perfecting their strategies to better attract the numerous nurses, doctors, and other health care workers stranded in the city.