A recent study released by the Florida Center for Nursing shows that there is a serious shortage of nurses in Florida. There is a vacancy rate of 9 percent overall hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, public health departments and hospices, the study found.
No-one is surprised that there’s a nursing shortage in Florida or anywhere else. Schools do not pay nursing teachers enough; most nursing teachers need to have at least a master’s degree, and an experienced registered nurse with a master’s degree can make a heck of a lot more money working for a private employer than they can for a school
And if there aren’t enough nursing teachers, then not enough students can be taught. While employers are desperately trying to hire nurses, nursing schools are turning away qualified students. In Florida in 2007, an astonishing 60 percent of qualified applicants to bachelor’s of science in nursing programs were turned away!
Although this is bad news for employers, it’s good news for nurses who want to practice in Florida. And if you’re not a nurse yet but you want to be, then use our suggestions to get past those nursing school waiting lists, and then go get your dream job!