Geriatric Nurses Needed!
There is a general shortage of nurses in the United States right now. That shortage is attributed to a variety of factors, a few of which include:
- inadequate science education in America’s public schools
- limited entry in University-level programs (that is many nursing programs accept a limited amount of students each year)
- lack of interest in nursing as a career
Regardless of the causes of the nursing shortage, it is widely recognized as one of the most serious problems facing the healthcare community today.
According to an article at Medscape.com, there is an especial shortage of geriatric nurses currently. This is mainly because careers in geriatric medicine are not as lucrative as careers in other areas of medicine. Clearly, this is a serious crisis. As America’s baby boomers begin entering the age category of “senior citizens” it is obvious that the demand for geriatric nurses will skyrocket.
Fortunately, most careers work with the ebb and flow of the economy. When demand for people in a field is high and supply is low, the salaries for those positions will increase. Although, it will likely take government intervention to increase the salaries of geriatric nurses and other practitioners of geriatric medicine since the majority of them receive their payments through the Medicare system.
So, although the pay in geriatric nursing right now is not on par with most other nursing jobs, the salaries in that field should be on the rise within the next twenty years – as the Baby Boomers age. Plus, with the demand already being high, many geriatric nurses are pleased with their wide array of options in hospitals, nursing homes and other care centers and at-home nursing agencies. For some geriatric nurses, the perks of being in high demand make up for the less-than-ideal salary.
With the high demand for geriatric nurses, now is a great time to get into the field. That way when the salaries go up and more people enter the field of geriatric nursing, you will already have years of experience and maybe even seniority in your hospital or nursing home, and that will allow you more ready access to raises and promotions.
Tagged With geriatric nursing
Comments
Leave a Reply