Georgia M. SteadWrit 3315 May 2014The Global Nursing ShortageAccording to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, registered nursing is listed among the top occupations in terms of job growth through 2022, with demand increasing to at least 19% by 2022 (2012). Especially over the past decade, there has been a serious shortage in the number of nurses needed to fill the huge amount of open positions available. Why is there such a shortage in the nursing profession, and is it real in this type of economy? Unexpectedly, today there are many unemployed nurses struggling to find work. An MPR article by Annie Baxter claims to have interviewed many unemployed nurses who say the shortage is just a myth. He goes on to state that “as the recession hit, people used healthcare less, prompting hospitals to hire fewer nurses” (2012). This information couldn't be further from the truth. The healthcare industry is at an all-time high right now and there are tons of nursing opportunities out there. The nursing shortage is real, and the misconception lies in the fact that hospitals require a higher level of education than in the past. You might ask, if there is such a shortage, why would they be more selective in their criteria? Because of the shortage, nurses are forced to be more responsible in their work, more independent, work longer hours, and handle an unfavorable number of patients at a time. This challenging work requires hospitals to become more selective in the types of nurses they hire (Aiken LH, 2011). In this presentation, I will explain in depth these growing problems, how the unavailability of nursing education is the main reason why there is a global nursing shortage today, and my voice... in the center of the paper... In medium Demands for more educated nurses. http://www.aacn.nche.edu/news/articles/2012/enrollment-data.Baxter, A., 2012. Nursing Shortage Largely a myth for job seekers, MPR News. 11, May 2012.Buerhaus PI, Auerbach DI and Staiger DO, 2009. The recent increase in nursing employment: causes and implications. Health Affairs, 28 (4): 657-658. Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor (2014), Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-15 edition, Registered Nurses, on the Internet at http://www. bls.gov /ooh/healthcare/registered-nurses.htmNational League for Nursing, 2012. Research and grants. http://www.nln.org/researchgrants/slides/viewall_1112.htm#1Needleman, J., Buerhaus, P., Pankratz, S., Leibson, CL, Stevens SR & Harris M., 2011. Nurse Staffing and Inpatient Hospital mortality, The New England Journal of Medicine, 364:1037-1045, DOI: 10.1056/NEJMsa1001025