ABSTRACT
The United States is experiencing a nursing shortage. Hospitals in particular, where two thirds of all registered nurses are employed, went from a vacancy rate of 4.4% in 1983 to 11.3% in 1987 (Secretary's Commission on Nursing, 1988). Low wages, lack of autonomy, stress, an environment unsupportive of nursing as a profession, and excessive time demands are among the reasons cited for the high nursing turnover. Further, young adults, especially women, are opting for career paths that avoid the economic and stressful pitfalls of the nursing profession. This decreases the number of nurses being trained for the work pool.
