A New Image for Nursing by Megan Malugani Summary Nursing shortages call for new tactics to attract workers The need for new RNs to replace retiring Baby Boomers.
Nursing is financially rewarding and a helping profession.
With a major nursing shortage on the horizon, healthcare and nursing organizations are giving the profession a dramatic makeover in hopes of attracting a new, diverse generation of RNs to the workforce. Groups like Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow and the Coalition for Nursing Careers in California are launching image campaigns to update the public's perception of the profession, and to ensure enough new RNs will enter the workforce to replace retiring Baby Boomer nurses. Women, who still make up more than 90 percent of the RN workforce, have a wider range of career choices today. There is a lingering belief that nursing is not a secure job, a holdover from a few years ago when hospitals were laying off nurses under the pressure of managed care. School counselors and parents who advise kids on careers don't realize the salary potential and range of opportunities available to nurses.