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ABSTRACT
Society faces an unprecedented shortage of nurses. One driver for the deficit is a shortfall in the number of faculty members available to educate current and future nurses. Another driver is the increasing age of nurse faculty. With the average age of master's and doctoral faculty older than age 50, nurse educators face short-term and long-term decisions about work and retirement. Aging faculty members bring intellectual capital, wisdom, leadership expertise, and a wealth of skills and abilities to the workforce. The nursing community, patients, and society will benefit by retaining aging nurse faculty in the workforce on a full-time or part-time basis. This article examines nurse faculty workforce issues and suggests strategies to enhance the retention and effective utilization of aging nurse faculty.
The United States and countries worldwide are experiencing a shortage of nurses. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) (2006a) reported that from 2005 to 2006, 41,683 qualified applications were turned away from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (2005) projected that by 2014, more than 1 million additional nurses will be needed. Aging faculty and a shortage of nurse educators combine to serve as powerful drivers that have the potential to leave nursing programs without faculty to educate the next generation of nurses.
According to the AACN, at an average age of 53 for doctorally prepared faculty (2003) and over 50 for master'sprepared faculty (2006b), retirement is imminent for a significant number of nurse faculty. Full-time faculty members retire, on average, at age 61.5 (AACN, 2003). One estimate is that 75% of current faculty members are expected to retire by 2019 (National League for Nursing, 2005).
Retirement studies suggest that employees continue to work for additional financial security, to stay healthy and active, for enjoyment, and to aid in fulfilling family responsibilities (Smyer & Pitt-Catsouphes, 2005). In a 2006 report summarizing published literature on the nursing faculty shortage, salary and heavy workload dissatisfaction were noted as key reasons faculty retire or take new jobs (Yordy, 2006).
The current and projected shortage of nurses has prompted public organizations and private foundations to support research to address nurse workforce challenges. In parallel, research studies related to aging of the workforce have increased substantially. Yet, a thorough...