Is the Lack of Motivation a Cause for the Nursing Shortage

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Recommended: Nursing Shortage And Nurse Turnover

Health care is facing a nursing shortage that will challenge the delivery of medical care throughout the United States and world. The current registered nurse (RN) shortage is predicted to increase over the next 20 years due to the imminent retirement of the Baby Boomer generation (Griffith, 2012). The nursing profession faces difficulties attracting new nurses and retaining the existing workforce. Many factors, including poor retention rates within the profession, contribute to this problem (Gambino, 2010). Unfortunately, often due to the lack of financial resources, many of the changes suggested to encourage retention are difficult, even impossible to achieve. For this reason, Gambino (2010) suggests researching personal commitment and the factors that affect commitment of whether a nurse will remain with an employer or nursing profession.
Motivation
Gambino (2010) conducted a study to identify reasons or motivations individuals enter the nursing profession. Motivations were either altruistically or analytically driven. Those altruistically motivated become nurses as the result of a calling or a wish to work in a caring profession. Analytically motivated individuals chose a nursing career for reasons including job security, flexibility, benefits, and perceived opportunities for advancement (Gambino, 2010).
With the Ochsner Health System, several programs are in place for those with an interest in the healthcare field and wish to explore different areas of medicine. These programs range from volunteerism to academic outreach programs. Job shadowing, a unique offering, allows those aged 16 and older to have one-on-one experiences in a healthcare profession of their choice, up to 40 hours (Ochsner, n.d., “Field trips”). For qu...

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...appreciation. Retrieved from http://www.ochsner.org/careers/employee_appreciation
Ochsner. (n.d.). Field trips & job shadows. Retrieved from http://www.ochsner.org/community/field_trips/
Ochsner. (n.d.). Ochsner STAR program. Retrieved from http://www.ochsner.org/community/ochsner_star_program/
Ochsner. (n.d.). Volunteering. Retrieved from http://www.ochsner.org/donate_volunteer/volunteering/
Ochsner. (2012). 2012 benefits guide. Retrieved from http://choose-healthy.org/benefits-flash-demo.php
Ochsner. (2013a). Performance assessment/pay for performance. In Policies and procedures.
Ochsner. (2013b). Tuition assistance. In Policies and procedures.
Ochsner. (2014a). Clinical ladder program. In Professional development.
Ochsner. (2014b). Commitment to professional development. In Policies and procedures.
Purpera, C. (2014, April 16). [Personal interview by the author].

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