A PROJECTION OF NURSING MANPOWER NEEDS IN GEORGIA'S ACUTE HEALTH CARE FACILITIES WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING EDUCATION (HEALTH CARE FACILITIES, GEORGIA).
Contributors: University of Mississippi.
Published: 1992
Number of pages: 199
Subjects: Education, Higher.; Health Sciences, Nursing.; Education, Health.
Description: The purpose of this study was to describe the current supply and demand for nursing manpower, inclusive of Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) as well as the various levels of Registered Nurses (RNs), to compare the current supply with the demand projected for 5 years from the study, and to identify implications for nursing education. Nurse executives were polled with a simple questionnaire in order to obtain data regarding current and projected demand. The response rate among nurse executives polled was 100 of 142, or 70.4%. Deans of basic and graduate nursing programs were polled with another simple questionnaire in order to obtain data regarding the current and projected supply of RNs. Response rate among deans polled was 100%.

Seventeen hypotheses were tested. The first 12 dealt with the current and projected demand for nurses of various educational preparations. The next four hypotheses examined the relationships between urban or rural status and between large and small size of institution upon the balance of supply and demand of nursing manpower. A final hypothesis examined growth of the supply of new RN graduates over the next 5 years. All hypotheses were stated in the null form, and all were tested at the 0.05 level of significance with the paired differences t-test or the chi square test of independence.

It was found that there is a current and projected shortage of LPNs, but the growth of demand for LPNs in acute care hospitals will be minimal. The current demand for RNs is greatest for bachelor's-prepared RNs, and least for those with diploma or master's preparation. The projected needs for RNs show a greater need for all levels of RNs except those with diploma preparation, of whom there will be a surplus. It was found that the supply of RNs from educational institutions will continue to grow significantly with the exception of master's-prepared RNs. The latter finding represents a significant factor in the future supply of RNs because the master's prepared RN is not only a valuable worker in the acute care practice setting, but also a potential pool of educators for aspiring RNs.

It was found that large and urban hospitals were more likely to have current manpower shortages, but small and rural hospitals project more shortages in 5 years.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-01, Section: A, page: 0104.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI, 1992.

School code: 0131.