Another problem with the nursing shortage is not that there is not enough applicants but it is also because hospitals and other healthcare facilities are demanding nurses that have experience. 

Companies that cater to hospitals in providing temporary nurses like Aya healthcare have a large source of nurses that have at least 1 year of experience but some hospitals would like nurses with more experience which makes it difficult to find.

There’s still need for nurses, just not right now

“When we started school, everybody was in the mindset that there’s a nursing shortage and we’d have no problem getting a job, that places would be knocking on your door,” said Beth Larson, 31, a nursing student graduating in May. “The tables have been totally turned upside-
down. It’s frustrating because we’ve all worked so hard, and it just adds anxiety onto all of the other things we’re doing.”

Part of the pullback is that hospitals are treating fewer patients, who are putting off procedures because of insurance loss or increased insurance costs, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

The health-care sector still is adding jobs, but the growth has slowed because more-experienced nurses are coming out of retirement or delaying it, and part-time nurses are taking on full-time positions.

“We are in a shaky economy, and our business really centers around the needs of patients,” said Lucy Reavis, OSF’s director of human resources. “That’s the challenge in a health-care environment.”

Still, the hiring slowdown is probably temporary, local officials say. The average age of a nurse is 56, and analysts with the Bureau of Labor Statistics project that more than 587,000 new RN positions will be created through 2016.

The Hiring Freeze in Nursing

More news reports indicate a widespread slowdown in available nursing jobs with the primary reasons being:

• Nurses are taking more shifts in reaction to this economy
• People are avoiding the hospital to save money, reducing the current needs

Nurses are putting off retirement