Nursing Workforce Issues in Rural and Urban Settings: Looking at the Difference in Recruitment, Retention and Distribution

Abstract

Nursing personnel workforce issues vary depending on geographic and population density of health care settings and the type of agency. The purpose of this investigation was to explore the distribution of registered nurses in rural and urban health care settings (public health departments, long-term care facilities and hospitals); examine recruitment and retention strategies and barriers; and to analyze relationships between distribution of nurses and recruitment and retention. Written surveys of 131 rural and urban nursing administrators (response rate 57%) evaluated the quantitative and open-ended responses to questions regarding specific personnel numbers and recruitment and retention strategies and barriers. Results revealed that using the FTE (Full time equivalency) vacancy formula, rural health care settings reported the lowest vacancies; however, when major vacancies did exist, they were greater in the rural settings. Salaries, changes in local economies and military closures, and major changes in nursing position allocations had both a negative and positive effect on both the rural and urban health care settings. The findings indicate that numbers alone are not a sufficient means to determine the need for nurses, and shortages can pose a significant threat to quality and access of health care. Keywords: nursing workforce recruitment, retention, distribution http://dx.doi.org/10.14574/ojrnhc.v1i1.499