ST. LOUIS (KMOX) — This would be the perfect time to thank a nurse -- as we celebrate National Nurses Week. The first National Nurses Week was observed in 1954.
"I look at nurses and think of all the qualities they possess," said Kathy Bonser, Regional VP of Nursing for SSM Health St. Louis. "You have to have amazing critical thinking skills, you have to be intuitive and you have to have a lot of courage." But Missouri -- like Illinois and the nation overall -- is facing a big nursing shortage. Thirteen percent of all nursing jobs in Missouri are unfilled. The St. Louis area has the highest nursing vacancy rate in the state at 18-percent.
"You've got baby boomer nurses set to retire in the coming years," Bonser tells KMOX. "And I think one of the things that really contributes to the nursing shortage is the ability to get nurses enrolled in programs. There's also a faculty shortage so that makes training nurses more challenging." There are other challenges as well.
"I think another factor compounding the nursing shortage is healthcare is changing in a lot of different ways," said Bonser. "We're not only competing for a smaller pool of available resources, we also have to compete with different types of jobs that for some may be more appealing. Maybe it's a job where they only work Monday through Friday, or there's no night shift involved, or no holidays. Those jobs are becoming more and more prevalent and we do see nurses seeking those types of opportunities." But while the vacancy rate in the St. Louis area is the highest in the state, the turnover rate here is the second lowest in Missouri at 14.3%.
"One of the main things that I think SSM Health does is try to create an environment that allows nurses to be able to do their best work in a way that they feel supported and that they can really spend that time with their patients," said Bonser. "They don't want to be trapped by tasks that don't add value. Nurses really want to spend time at the bedside talking with their patients, teaching and getting them ready for the next part of their care, whether that's at home, or a skilled nursing facility or a rehab facility."
Bonser also says SSM Health St. Louis has put together some professional development pathways for nurses who are interested in learning about different roles so they can continue to develop as a registered nurse.
"When you hire someone on your team, you really want to be sure you are developing and nurturing them," said Bonser.
"At SSM Health, we have multiple facilities, multiple ministries here in St. Louis. We can move nurses more freely within our system because we have the same electronic health records and same policies, so assimilating to a new culture is not that difficult. If a nurse who starts on a medical surgical unit has a desire to work in an operating room, we have training programs that can help them do that. That way you don't have to go find a job at another organization. We can do all that within the SSM Health system."
To help provide more nurses down the road, the University of Missouri Columbia recently approved a 30 million dollar project to build a replacement building for the M-U Sinclair School of Nursing -- which will allow for more nurses to be trained in the future. In addition, the Missouri State Board of Nursing has taken action to expand five of the state's nursing programs.
Bonser says this National Nurses Week is a good time to remind everyone of the value that nurses bring to the table.
"Just the ability to be present to the patient," said Bonser. "This is what people want. People remember nurses for what they do -- whether they shepherd them through a difficult procedure, or were there when they received challenging news or a difficult diagnosis. They hold a dying patient's hand and comfort a grieving family member. We look at these moments in nursing as really sacred. And while that's not easily measured, it's what makes nurses so special."