Scarce Resources

Scarce Resources

Putting an End to faculty Shortage

Issue

One problem contributing to the nursing workforce is the shortage of nurse educators and the aging nursing faculty. (Kowalski, Dalley, & Weigand 2006) Why are nurse educators retiring? Many factors influence the nurse educator’s decision to retire. If this issue is not addressed the nursing profession will face many challenges and consequences. A solution must be implemented. Faculty shortage will impact everyone. Kowalski, Dalley, and Weigand have written an article discussing the research findings related to faculty retirement issues which will be referred to in this editorial.

Influencing Factors

Factors that influence nurse educators retirement decisions are: workplace issues, financial security, personal and family health, and attitudes about retirement. Workplace issues may consist of job satisfaction and whether a university has a mandatory retirement age. Financial security is whether or not the nurse educator has sufficient funds from retirement plans. Does the

retiring educator have other financial sources for retirement or is the debt-to-income ratio low. Personal and family health refers to the availability of healthcare benefits. Attitudes about retirement reflect how the retiring educator views retirement (Kowalski, Dalley, & Weigand, 2006).

Supporting Sources

A study funded by the Australian Government found that universities have a difficult

time attracting qualified educators (Boyes and Neville,2007). Berlin and Sechrist (2002) projected that 200 to 300 doctorally prepared faculty will exit their positions annually from 2003 through 2012. Based on the best case scenario the largest number of faculty retirement is projected in 2009 (Kowalski, Dalley, & Weigand, 2006).

Challenges and Consequence

If this issue is not addressed the number of educators will not be sufficient to meet the

demands of nursing programs. This will limit the number of...