Symposium addresses county's nursing shortage
By Michelle Knight knight@theacorn.com

An unsafe work environment for nurses working in hospitals may be contributing to a shortage of nurses, said an industry expert at an April 4 nursing symposium at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Camarillo.

A group of 120 hospital administrators, educators, students and experienced nurses listened as Rick Martin, chief nursing officer and senior vice president of clinical operations at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, said the situation will only get worse unless hospitals change their policies and nursing programs accept more students.

"Our brightest and best are not going to wait two years to get into college," Martin said, referring to the waiting list for many nursing schools throughout the state.

Schools without the capacity to accept more nursing students is another the contributing factor to the county's nursing shortage, according to a report presented at a nursing summit in April 2007, hosted by California State University Channel Islands and the nonprofit Ventura County Community Foundation.

The foundation was one of 10 nationwide, and the only one in California, to participate in a national initiative to develop and test solutions to the nursing shortage.

Ventura County has 372 nurses for every 100,000 residents, almost half the state's average of 622 nurses per 100,000. The national average is 787 nurses per 100,000 residents.

With forecasts of older county residents outpacing the growth of other demographic groups and a significant number of nurses nearing retirement age, the need for skilled nurses is more pronounced in Ventura County, experts say.

The foundation and university last year brought together nursing and healthcare leaders for the Ventura Nursing Legacy Project to determine key factors that are contributing to the county's nursing shortage. The study cited 14 issues that inhibit a strong supply of nurses in Ventura County, including nursing programs that lack sufficient teaching faculty, students' need for child care, lack of workplace mentoring programs and work-related injuries.

Martin said hospitals need policies that protect the health of nurses. Home Depot restricts its employees from lifting more than 50 pounds without assistance, but many hospitals have no such policy for nurses, who may be expected to singlehandedly push a 600-pound bed occupied by a 200-pound patient down the hall, he said.

Martin urged nurses to have a more aggressive response when the Legislature threatens to change the nursing profession without their input.

Nurses typically don't speak out, he said, and as a result salaries have stagnated, nursing schools have reduced or capped enrollment and procedures traditionally performed by nurses, such as the finger prick for blood tests, are increasingly being performed by people with less rigorous medical training.

Martin also called on nursing schools to update curricula that's five years old or older and to ensure it realistically addresses job demands and patient needs.

Hospitals must act now and not wait for the state to solve the nursing shortage, Martin said. Medical facilities must ensure their environment is safe for nurses and that supportive policies are in place.

One of the philosophies Hoag Memorial administrators subscribe to is that no one comes to work intending to harm patients; therefore, nurses are not punished for errors or near misses, Martin said. If a nurse does make a mistake, Hoag administrators may recommend more education for the individual, he said.

Policies like this make Hoag Memorial an attractive place for nurses to work, Martin said. Hoag has an industry low 10 percent turnover rate for nurses and earned Magnet status three years ago from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. Magnet status indicates highquality nursing staff and hospital procedures, according to the credentialing agency.

"These things make a difference," said Barbara Thorpe, CSUCI professor of nursing and director of the Ventura Nursing Legacy Project. Thorpe said Ventura County is producing 69 percent more nurses than it did four years ago, but the bad news is there are only three nursing programs in the county, limiting the supply.

The next step for the Legacy Project is to create a campaign to educate the public and to encourage corporate and private foundations to fund strategies aimed at alleviating the county's nursing shortage, Thorpe said.