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Barbara Blakeney, MS, APRN,BC, ANP
President
American Nurses Association
Remarks
Health and Human Services Press Conference
September 30, 2002
Good afternoon. I am pleased to be here today representing the American Nurses Association. The American Nurses Association represents the interests of the nation's registered nurses. RNs comprise the largest group of health care professionals in the United States, with more than 2.2 million nurses employed in health care. Nurses literally underpin the health care system.
As we gather here today, the U.S. is experiencing a nurse staffing crisis and a growing shortage of registered nurses. HHS and other agencies, both private and public, have issued numerous reports which indicate that the shortage will worsen in the next 10-20 years as the supply of registered nurses shrinks while the demand for nursing services continues to grow.
Of greatest concern to the public, of course, is that the shortage of nurses already has negatively affected access to and quality of care. According to a recent survey of hospitals across the nation, shortages of nurses are causing ambulance diversions and emergency room overcrowding, increased wait times for surgery, scaled back or discontinued patient-care programs, delayed discharges and canceled surgeries.
Furthermore, there is evidence that clearly shows that inadequate nurse staffing is contributing to a decline in the quality of health care. In August, the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations– JCAHO– issued its report on the nursing shortage, concluding that, "When there are too few nurses, patient safety is threatened and health care quality is diminished." In addition, the JCAHO report found that nearly 25 percent of complications that resulted in death or injury to hospital patients arose from the nursing shortage.
Clearly, a nursing shortage undermines our nation's ability to provide high quality health care services, and ultimately, affects the health of the nation.
A shortage of nurses takes on new meaning in the face of our nation's ongoing war against terrorism. Registered nurses have always answered the call from our country's leaders in times of crisis. And at no time was this more apparent than last September 11th following the terrorist strikes, and in the days that followed.
Therefore, the ANA is extremely pleased to be partnering with HHS in the National Nurses Response Teams. We now have another opportunity to serve this country.
Today's announcement of federal nursing education grants is an important step to help support those who choose nursing as a profession.
An investment in nursing education is an investment in the health of the nation. Building a stronger, more diverse nursing workforce helps to increase access to health care in communities that have been traditionally underserved.
We applaud Secretary Thompson for his commitment to nursing and look forward to working together to find additional solutions to the growing shortage of nurses.
In addition to current federal programs that fund nursing education, legislation that supports both nurse recruitment and retention passed Congress in July. President Bush signed the bill, the Nurse Reinvestment Act, into law on August 1.
In addition to funding for scholarships and loan repayments for nursing students who agree to work in shortage areas after they graduate, the measure includes funding to promote nursing as a career, grants to encourage facilities to implement best practices for excellence in nursing services, loan cancellations for nursing faculty and grants for geriatric care training.
The final step in making the Nurse Reinvestment Act meaningful is to secure funding, which will be handled through a separate appropriations bill that Congress is expected to introduce this fall. ANA, together with other nursing and health care organizations, is asking Congress for $250 million in funding. We must complete this important piece of work and we look forward to the administration's continued support for these critical programs.
In closing, nursing is a career that is challenging, rewarding and vital to quality health care. I am confident that working together we will find solutions to stem the shortage and continue nursing's tradition of providing safe, high-quality health care to consumers.
Thank you
Related Links:
- National Nurses Response Team(NNRT) page
- Press release: ANA, HHS Establish National Nurses Response Team.
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