Home

Aging RN Workforce May Lead to Nurse Shortages

Wed, 08/16/2000 - 12:00am — Karen Stevenson
Description: 

The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reports on a study led by Peter I. Buerhaus, PhD, RN, where researchers studied the implications of the increasing age of the nursing work force. They found that between 1983 and 1998 the average age of working RNs increased by more than 4 years, while the proportion of the RN workforce younger than 30 years old decreased from 30% to 12%, and the number of working nurses younger than 30 years old decreased by 41%. In contrast, the average age of the US workforce as a whole increased by less than 2 years during this period, while the total labor force in the United States younger than 30 years decreased by less than 1%.

The researchers conclude that the primary factor that created the aging of the RN workforce appears to be the decline in the number of younger women choosing nursing as a career during the last 2 decades, and postulate that unless this trend is reversed, the RN workforce will continue to age, and eventually shrink, and will not meet projected long-term workforce requirements.

The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reports on a study led by Peter I. Buerhaus, PhD, RN, where researchers studied the implications of the increasing age of the nursing work force. They found that between 1983 and 1998 the average age of working RNs increased by more than 4 years, while the proportion of the RN workforce younger than 30 years old decreased from 30% to 12%, and the number of working nurses younger than 30 years old decreased by 41%. In contrast, the average age of the US workforce as a whole increased by less than 2 years during this period, while the total labor force in the United States younger than 30 years decreased by less than 1%.

The researchers conclude that the primary factor that created the aging of the RN workforce appears to be the decline in the number of younger women choosing nursing as a career during the last 2 decades, and postulate that unless this trend is reversed, the RN workforce will continue to age, and eventually shrink, and will not meet projected long-term workforce requirements.