Two hospitals in Aberdeen could mean local nurses have more options, said 36-year nurse Deb Pederson.
But with a nationwide nursing shortage, some people wonder if there are enough nurses for two hospitals in Aberdeen. Sioux Falls-based Sanford Health intends to build a 36-bed hospital adjacent to Sanford Clinic Aberdeen, formerly United Clinic.
Nurses might benefit in some ways, Pederson, of Mina, said.
"They could have more of a choice to specialize in a certain area," she said.
It could also mean an increase in wages because of competition, said Pederson, director of nursing for Aberdeen's Orthopedic Center of the Dakotas. The independent center includes Orthopedic Surgery Specialists, Dakota Plains Surgical Center and Aberdeen Physical Therapy.
The nursing shortage in the U.S. is expected to grow as baby boomers age and the need for health care increases, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. This organization's Web site lists contributing factors such as a shortage of nursing school faculty and an increase in the average age of nurses.
Earlier this year, the New York Sun reported that the nursing shortage in that state was becoming more grim. Reuters reported this year that a California study listed "a persistent nursing shortage" as one reason for changing that state's nursing education system.
This month, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported ways that hospitals strive to keep nurses satisfied in light of a shortage.
In South Dakota, there were 12,581 actively licensed registered nurses as of Sept. 26, according to statistics from the state Board of Nursing. That's up from 11,626 nurses statewide reported in 2007. Gaining numbers is certainly positive, said Linda Young, nursing program specialist for the state Board of Nursing and program director for the South Dakota Center for Nursing Workforce.
A need for nurses exists in some parts of the state, Young said, but South Dakota's need is certainly not as great as in bigger states.
But with an aging population, the state is trying to be proactive to meet potential future demands, Young said.
The South Dakota State Data Center suggests a 58-percent increase in people of retirement age in coming years, according to a registered nursing fact sheet from the state Department of Health.
The state Department of Labor predicts that an increase of 28.2 percent in the number of registered nurses is needed between 2006 and 2016, according to information from Young.
Young said nursing leaders from education, practice and regulation are proactively working on long-term solutions. Those include increasing nursing education program enrollment, promoting nursing scholarships, retaining enrolled nursing students and increasing the pool of qualified nursing education faculty to teach in nursing schools, she said.
"We're just trying to maintain proactive measures," Young said.
In Aberdeen, Avera employs about 350 nurses, said Joan Bitz, director of inpatient service for Avera St. Luke's Hospital.
There are around 12 open positions right now, both part time and full time, said Jan Patterson, director of behavioral health service for St. Luke's. The average age of a nurse at St. Luke's is 46, Patterson said, which is slightly higher than the average age of a nurse statewide, which is 44.9, according to the Board of Nursing.
Plans call for Sanford Regional Hospital Aberdeen to open mid-2011. At that time, 200 new positions will need to be filled. Between 70 and 85 of them will be in nursing, said Evan Burkett, chief human resource officer for Sanford Health.
"We're confident that we're going to be able to find the nurses that we need for the hospital," he said.
Burkett said Sanford realizes Aberdeen is a different environment from Sioux Falls, but Sanford places nurses in rural facilities in a three-state region.
"We're excited about this opportunity," he said.
Sanford will likely recruit nurses through ad placements and job fairs and possibly have transfers within its own system, Burkett said.
"We anticipate it will take all the available options to fill those positions," he said. " ... We'll be looking at anybody who's interested in wanting to become part of the organization."
Patterson said any new health-care facility would impact St. Luke's from a nursing standpoint, particularly if there is a duplication of services.
"We are already short," she said.
Mary Davis, vice president of human resources for Avera St. Luke's, said there will be challenges, but those challenges would have been there regardless of a second hospital.
"It certainly won't make it any easier," she said.
Davis added, "We're just really starting to look at how it will impact us and what we need to do."
Orthopedic Center of the Dakotas' Pederson said Aberdeen benefits from having Presentation College.
The college's bachelor's degree in nursing has the capacity of 64 admissions per year, according to a statement from PC. So, if the region's health-care facilities determine there is a potential nursing shortage, the college is committed to educating and has the capacity to accommodate those students, according to the statement.
Patterson said St. Luke's has been working on recruitment and retention for the past two years, before officials heard of another hospital. For years, Avera has been targeting younger students in recruitment efforts, she said.
Peggy Canter, talent acquisition manager for Sanford Health human resources, said the state's Health Occupations for Today and Tomorrow program is a great way to get kids thinking about careers in the medical field, not just nursing. This program gears health career information to students at all grade levels, according to HOTT's Web site.
Canter said from a recruitment perspective, Sanford needs to continue to work with the state to bring back workers who have left South Dakota and students in out-of-state nursing programs, as well as retaining students who are in South Dakota from leaving when they graduate.
Burkett said Sanford has worked with all state nursing schools, including Presentation College, and some out-of-state nursing schools to provide a loan-forgiveness program to nursing students who agree to work for Sanford after they graduate.
The Board of Nursing also has a loan-forgiveness program, said Gloria Damgaard, executive director for the board. Every nurse who renews a license puts in $10, Damgaard said. This money goes into a restricted fund, which amounts to about $60,000 a year, she said. From it, loans of $1,000 are awarded annually to nursing students, she said. Applications are taken from all state schools, and money is distributed based on how many nurses schools produce into the workforce each year. So one-third of the money goes to the University of South Dakota, one-third goes to South Dakota State University, and one-third goes to private schools, including PC, Damgaard said. Loans are forgiven at a rate of $1 per hour if the students work in South Dakota after they are licensed, she said. That amounts to six months' worth of employment, she said.
St. Luke's, too, offers a loan-forgiveness program, Patterson said, working with nursing schools such as PC. The hospital is also looking at additional scholarship programs and offering summer internships, she said.
Patterson said St. Luke's has increased its use of traveler nurses over the past year because of the shortage. Traveler nurses are hired through an agency to temporarily fill a position until a permanent employee can be hired, she said.
Nursing, said Davis, is a great profession.
"We just really encourage people to consider it," she said.source
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