The aim of this presentation was to explore the use of a comprehensive needs assessment to identify common and unique issues related to the statewide shortage of undergraduate and graduate clinical nursing faculty;this project assessed current efforts and resources that are in place for recruitment, training and mentoring of clinical nursing faculty across the State.
Background:
Globally, two factors impact the nurse faculty shortage and subsequent student enrollments: Economic migration contributing to a “brain drain” for many countries, and an aging nurse faculty force. (Gutierrez, Candela, & Carver, 2012; ICN, 2015; Newton, Pillay, & Higginbottom, 2012). In the United States the lack of experienced nurses in specific specialty areas and the later age nurses enter graduate schools, also contribute to the nurse faculty shortage (AACN, 2012). The Eastern Shore-Western Shore Faculty Initiative (ES-WSFI) created a needs assessment with the sole purpose of identifying issues related to the clinical nurse faculty shortage in Maryland, U.S.A. The needs assessment provided direction for planning and modifying current strategies addressing the nursing faculty shortage in regionally diverse nursing programs and is supported by a Maryland Higher Education System, Nurse Support Program-2 grant.
Methods:
In collaboration with 12 universities, colleges and community colleges, a mixed-methods approach comprised of web-based surveys, faculty focus groups and interviews with deans/directors of nursing education programs was conducted over a two year period. The comprehensive needs assessment included establishment of relationships with prospective partners, collection of demographic information about partner programs (educational offerings, staffing needs by clinical specialty and level), compilation of existing approaches to address staffing needs, identification of untapped resources, and discussions with partners about gaps and possible solutions. A dedicated website was constructed to facilitate communication about the project not only among partner institutions but across the state. A password protected database has been created to house the results of the needs assessment. With statewide data available in a single place, future initiatives can be planned and implemented, maximizing efficiency and effectiveness in utilization of resources while addressing the need for increasing capacity across all levels of nursing education from associate degree through doctoral degrees.
Results:
In undergraduate programs the majority of respondents agree or strongly agree there is inadequate clinical faculty for growth; in the graduate programs, only 1/3 of respondents agree there is inadequate clinical faculty for growth.
In both undergraduate and graduate programs 75%-80% agree or strongly agree it is difficult to recruit from underrepresented groups. 69% of undergraduate programs find it difficult to retain faculty from underrepresented groups, while 50% of graduate programs find it difficult to retain faculty from underrepresented groups.
Clinical specialties in greatest demand or representing the greatest need included: pediatrics, mental health (both acute and community-based), obstetrics and women’s health.
The nurse faculty shortage indirectly impacts faculty member’s ability to mentor, engage in scholarship and meet increasingly stringent promotion requirements. “Everybody is stretched really, really thin”
Despite concerted efforts to “grow our own” and by encouraging clinical specialists and alumni to teach on a part-time basis, these proactive initiatives to attract potential clinical faculty, as well as nationwide searches for nursing faculty, continue to be a challenge for most programs.
“We have 4-5 open positions at any given time; we are constantly serving on search committees.”
Challenges confronting universities, colleges and community colleges differ regionally and programmatically.
In this initiative, primary strategies currently in use to address the faculty shortage are incorporation of weekend clinical experiences or classes, hiring more clinical faculty and limiting the number of students that can be enrolled.
Conclusion:
Current practices are insufficient to meet the growing need for nursing faculty. In order to maximize human capital, a renewed focus on twin strategies of attracting faculty and retaining current faculty must include incentives for seasoned faculty such as: increased salaries for experienced faculty, release time or reduced workloads to provide time for scholarship, as well as support strategies for research and mentorship. In order to attract nurses to academia, Nardi and Gyurko (2013) suggest the inception of international cooperatives that would make possible collaborative teaching and enhance the global attractiveness and reach of nursing. They caution that the diminishing pipeline of PhD prepared nurses provide few “role models with whom nursing students can work and emulate in the practice setting” (p. 320).