title: Is the shortage of hospital registered nurses getting better or worse? Findings from two recent national surveys of RNs.
abstract: The results of two recent national surveys of RNs that were conducted at a time when the nursing shortage in the U.S. was in full force (2002) and 2 years later (2004) were compared. The findings provide a mixed assessment: on the one hand, there is evidence that the shortage has eased since 2002 and that there have been notable improvements in the lives of nurses; on the other hand, the shortage has had a negative impact on hospitals and nurses, and longstanding problems associated with the workplace environment remain.
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, Nashville, TN, USA.
authors.forename: Peter I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Buerhaus
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Donelan
authors.forename: Beth T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Ulrich
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Norman
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dittus
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002322:Career Mobility; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing; D005260:Female; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D008611:Mentors; D008875:Middle Aged; D015401:Nursing Administration Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000523:psychology; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling / Q000639:trends*; D010563:Personnel Turnover; D012456:Salaries and Fringe Benefits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D016526:Workload