For someone looking to go into the field of nursing, they know that they have chosen a field where there is a high demand for qualified nurses and excellent room for both professional development and job security in their field. Educating that new generation of nurses has presented itself as somewhat of a challenge in the 21st century in the last few years for a number of reasons. One of the biggest challenges facing the education of a new generation of nurses has been a shortage. Nursing by far represents the largest population of health care workers, but far more people are turning to traditional medicine rather than the vital support roles that nursing offers. Understanding some of these factors is key to understanding these challenges.
One factor that affects all segments of the health care population is the increasing number of elderly and the increasing number of chronically ill needing longterm treatment. An aging population has more long term medical conditions that require a long term management. With many chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease on the rise, having a qualified staff on hand to replace the current generation has proven to be difficult. Schools and universities have altered their educational methods to help with this recognized demand, but this has not been as successful as desired.
Health care costs have been steadily increasing over the past few years. Some of this is the result of an increasing population, but also increasing segments of the population needing longterm care. Factors like the increasing cost of drugs and the development of new medical technologies also have had a marked influence on the increasing medical costs. Administrative costs have also contributed to the increase in the cost of health care, mainly because the increase in population has created an increase in the number of people who must be processed and the information of that increasing population that must also be managed.
The nursing profession has experienced drastic shortages in the last few years. Nursing programs tend to be very competitive in spite of the shortage of qualified nurses, and the academic requirements tend to be more rigorous than other programs, mostly because of the duties that are required for registered nurses. The nursing workforce itself has been aging, and this has also been tied to a shortage of faculty nurses in schools and medical universities. Combine these factors, and there is a group of professionals who have difficulty connecting their work to a new generation of practitioners.
Changes in the way that healthcare is delivered in this country have also had an impact on the population of the nursing workforce. These changes have been quite rapid and have affected both medical technology developments and the new developments in medical knowledge. This has made it more difficult for nurse practitioners to keep abreast of developments within the medical field, and to make changes in the classroom to help students keep abreast of those changes. The outlook for the nursing profession does not look to improve much in the near future, but online learning has been one area where nurse educators have been able to make strides in meeting some of these challenges.
Nancy Meyers writes for education blogs where you can read more about the Top 10 Online Accelerated BSN Degree Programs.