Shift in Economic Conditions Diminishes Job Prospects for Nursing School Graduates in Calif.

Despite projections of a massive nursing shortage in the state, jobs are hard to come by because the recession has caused hospitals to cut back or freeze hiring and aging nurses who otherwise might be retiring are staying on the job.

A California Healthline Special Report by Deirdre Kennedy includes comments from:

Kathleen Dracup, dean of the UC-San Francisco School of Nursing;
Jan Emerson, vice president of external affairs for the California Hospital Association;
Deloras Jones, president and executive director of the California Institute for Nursing & Health Care; and
Brandy Logue, a nurse and instructor at Samuel Merritt University in Oakland.

“A lot of nurses who were expected to retire and leave the work force have not chosen to do so,” said Emerson, spokesperson for California Hospital Association. “A lot of nurses either look at their 401Kâs and decided that they were not yet in a financial position to retire, or perhaps their spouse lost a job and they needed to remain employed” (Kennedy, California Healthline, 2/12).

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<h1>Shift in Economic Conditions Diminishes Job Prospects for Nursing School Graduates in Calif.</h1>
<div>		<time class="posted-on" datetime="2010-02-12T00:00:00-08:00">
			February 12, 2010		</time>
		</div>
<p>Despite projections of a massive nursing shortage in the state, jobs are hard to come by because the recession has caused hospitals to cut back or freeze hiring and aging nurses who otherwise might be retiring are staying on the job.</p><p>A <i>California Healthline </i>Special Report by Deirdre Kennedy includes comments from:</p><ul><li>Kathleen Dracup, dean of the UC-San Francisco School of Nursing; </li><li>Jan Emerson, vice president of external affairs for the California Hospital Association; </li><li>Deloras Jones, president and executive director of the California Institute for Nursing & Health Care; and </li><li>Brandy Logue, a nurse and instructor at Samuel Merritt University in Oakland.</li></ul><p>“A lot of nurses who were expected to retire and leave the work force have not chosen to do so,” said Emerson, spokesperson for California Hospital Association. “A lot of nurses either look at their 401Kâs and decided that they were not yet in a financial position to retire, or perhaps their spouse lost a job and they needed to remain employed”<b> </b>(Kennedy, <i>California Healthline</i>, 2/12).</p><em><a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/about-us">KFF Health News</a> is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about <a href="https://www.kff.org/about-us">KFF</a>.</em><p><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/morning-briefing/">Subscribe</a> to KFF Health News' free Morning Briefing.</p>

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