Nursing workforce diversity: Promising educational practices

Follow-Up of a Program to Improve Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Student Diversity

BACKGROUND

Underrepresented student recruitment is critical to resolve persistent gaps in workforce diversity in the United States.

PURPOSE

Prenursing and nursing students participated in a nursing workforce diversity program designed to recruit and graduate underrepresented students, which provided academic and student support, financial support, and mentoring. A follow-up study was conducted to identify the impact of the program.

METHODS

Participants were surveyed about educational and employment information, perceptions about factors that contributed to success, benefits of the program, and educational experience. Descriptive summaries of data and thematic analysis of qualitative comments occurred.

RESULTS

Financial support, program quality, mentoring, career guidance, and meeting basic security needs were the strongest factors contributing to success. Program benefit themes included: feeling empowered, encouraging success, building confidence, and easing financial strain. Negative experiences with discrimination and bias were reported.

CONCLUSIONS

Cocurricular support can help facilitate belonging. Scholarship awards communicate belief in student success, which impacts confidence and achievement.

Underrepresented nurses' perceptions of a mentorship program supporting their applications for advanced practice nursing programs: A descriptive cross-sectional survey study

BACKGROUND

The diversity in the workforce of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists does not reflect the changing demographics.

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate a national mentorship program supporting underrepresented nurses' applications for nurse anesthesia education programs.

METHODS

Convenience sampling was employed to recruit the participants for this descriptive cross-sectional survey. The survey had 23 questions, including 21 multiple-choice questions and two open-ended questions.

FINDINGS

A total of 1,133 participants participated in the survey study. The average score of overall respondents' satisfaction level on the program was 4.87, with almost all participants (1,116, 98.6%) feeling satisfied or very satisfied with the program. The respondents provided 565 comments on the program (i.e., nine domains and 49 themes) and 842 learning reflection notes (i.e., eight domains and 53 themes).

DISCUSSION

This national initiative is a promising intervention to help underrepresented nurses get ready for nurse anesthesia education program applications.

Interventions to Increase the Diversity of Nursing Programs: An Integrative Review

BACKGROUND

In 2011, the Institute of Medicine's The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report declared the need to increase diversity in nursing. The National League for Nursing stated that nursing pipeline programs would be essential to create increased diversity. However, no details regarding the definition, construction, or implementation of a nursing pipeline were available within the position statement.

METHOD

An inclusive integrative literature review was conducted. The aim was to examine interventions targeted toward increasing diversity in nursing education programs.

RESULTS

Twelve articles were included in the review. Similar interventions were used by nursing education programs; these included strategies to raise awareness about nursing to prospective students, preen-try preparation, holistic admissions, scholarships, tutoring, mentoring, and targeted advising.

CONCLUSION

Evidence indicates interventions aimed at the retention of at-risk individuals are successful. Additional research is needed to develop effective recruitment strategies for diverse populations. [J Nurs Educ. 2024;63(6):387-393.].

Nursing Student Success: A Concept Analysis

AIM

The aim of this concept analysis was to develop a comprehensive definition of nursing student success.

BACKGROUND

Nursing student success has traditionally been viewed as timely program completion and passing the licensure exam on the first attempt. Little consideration has been given to holistic indicators of success that are inclusive of student well-being and mastery of self-care skills.

METHOD

Nursing student success was examined using Walker and Avant's eight-step process of concept analysis.

RESULTS

This concept analysis defined nursing student success in a holistic manner characterized by the achievement of performance standards, acquisition of nursing knowledge, skills, and competencies, and attainment of educational goals while experiencing a state of personal thriving.

CONCLUSION

This concept analysis highlights the need for academic programs and accrediting bodies to embrace holistic perspectives of nursing student success that are inclusive of student well-being and mastery of self-care skills.

Support for Doctoral Nursing Students in PhD Programs in the United States

BACKGROUND

The number of PhD nursing programs in the U.S. has increased, but the number of nursing students entering and completing these programs remains stagnant. It is crucial to consider innovative approaches to recruit, nurture, and graduate more diverse nursing students.

PURPOSE

This article presents the perceptions of PhD nursing students regarding their programs, experiences, and strategies to support their academic success.

METHODS

This study used a cross-sectional, descriptive design. Data were obtained from an online 65-question student survey completed between December 2020 and April 2021.

RESULTS

A total of 568 students from 53 nursing schools completed the survey. Five themes emerged regarding the barriers students experienced during their programs: Faculty issues, time management and balance, insufficient preparation for dissertation research, financial barriers, and COVID-19 impact. Student recommendations for improving PhD nursing programs were also captured in five themes: Program improvement, coursework improvement, research opportunities, faculty, and dissertation. The low numbers of male, non-binary, Hispanic/Latino, minority, and international survey respondents indicate a need for innovative recruitment and retention strategies to increase diversity of PhD students.

CONCLUSION

PhD program leaders should complete a gap analysis based on the recommendations in the new AACN position statement and perceptions of PhD students reported from this survey. By doing so, PhD programs will be better positioned to implement a roadmap for improvement to better prepare the next generation of nurse scientists, leaders, and scholars.

Racism is a motivator and a barrier for people of color aspiring to become midwives in the United States

OBJECTIVE

To understand motivators and barriers of aspiring midwives of color.

DATA SOURCES AND STUDY SETTING

Primary data were collected via a national online survey among people of color in the United States interested in pursuing midwifery education and careers between February 22 and May 2, 2021.

STUDY DESIGN

Cross-sectional survey consisted of 76 questions (75 closed-ended and 1 open-ended questions) including personal, familial, community, and societal motivators and barriers to pursuing midwifery.

DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS

We recruited respondents 18 years and older who identified as persons of color by posting the survey link on midwifery, childbirth, and reproductive justice listservs, social media platforms, and through emails to relevant midwifery and doula networks. We conducted descriptive and bivariate analyses by demographic characteristics and used exemplar quotes from the open-ended question to illustrate findings from the descriptive data.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

The strongest motivating factors for the 799 respondents were providing racially concordant care for community members (87.7 percent), reducing racial disparities in health (67.2 percent), and personal experiences related to midwifery care (55.4 percent) and health care more broadly (54.6 percent). Main barriers to entering midwifery were direct (58.2 percent) and related (27.5 to 52.8 percent) costs of midwifery education, and lack of racial concordance in midwifery education and the midwifery profession (31.5 percent) that may contribute to racially motivated exclusion of people of color. Financial and educational barriers were strongest among those with lower levels of income or education.

CONCLUSIONS

Structural and interpersonal racisms are both motivators and barriers for aspiring midwives of color. Expanding and diversifying the perinatal workforce by addressing the financial and educational barriers of aspiring midwives of color, such as providing funding and culturally-competent midwifery education, creating a robust pipeline, and opening more midwifery schools, is a matter of urgency to address the maternal health crisis.

Global Oncology Nursing Recruitment and Retention: A SWOT Analysis

OBJECTIVES

This article documents the current status of global recruitment and retention of oncology nurses. A strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats model was used to identify internal-to-nursing recruitment and retention factors/influences and external opportunities and threats as well as strategies and initiatives to improve the current situation.

DATA SOURCES

Data sources include published and grey literature from around the world.

CONCLUSION

Despite the increasing cancer burden threatening public health worldwide, recruitment and retention of oncology nurses remains challenging. Nursing strengths include action by oncology nursing associations, prelicensure nurse recruitment and preceptorships, and models of hospital shared governance. Nursing weaknesses include nurse bullying, practice models that curtail clinical nurses' autonomy, and hierarchical and inflexible nursing leadership. External to nursing are opportunities exemplified by international partnerships in oncology care and international oncology conferences for networking and learning. Examples of external threats are a lack of oncology nursing faculty, disrespectful media portrayal of nurses, community misconceptions about cancer curability, and hazards of cancer nursing.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

Governments and hospital authorities wishing to successfully address cancer control must strategically plan for the recruitment and retention of an adequate nursing workforce. Opportunities such as government recognition of oncology specialty training, shared governance, continuing specialized education, advanced practice nursing roles and career paths, and participation in national cancer control planning will increase and sustain a critical oncology nursing workforce.

Aligning Nursing Ethics With Critical and Open Pedagogy in Nursing Education: A Literature Review

BACKGROUND

There is a need to increase access to nursing education that is meaningful and socially just.

PURPOSE

To investigate the alignment of critical and open pedagogy in nursing education with nursing principles of ethics.

METHOD

Narrative thematic synthesis literature review of Canadian and American sources related to nursing education.

RESULTS

Thematic analysis of 29 full-text sources that align nursing ethical principles with critical and open pedagogy in nursing education.

CONCLUSION

Critical and open pedagogy aligns with nursing practice ethics and facilitates meaningful and socially just nursing education experiences.

The Impact of Collaborative Online International Learning on Intercultural Sensitivity Among Nursing Students in the United States and Japan

ABSTRACT

Collaborative online international learning (COIL) is a curricular approach that allows students to collaborate across cultures using various communication technologies. Little is known about the influence of COIL on intercultural sensitivity, a key competency for nursing students to better serve increasingly diverse patient populations. We implemented COIL in undergraduate nursing courses in the United States and Japan and examined its impact on intercultural sensitivity using the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) as a pretest and posttest. The results of a paired t -test indicated ISS total scores significantly increased after COIL, supporting its use in nursing education courses.

A Nursing School on Reservation Land

ABSTRACT

An associate degree in nursing program was established six years ago at the tribal college of the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, home of the Aaniiih and Nakoda people. As this program continues to evolve and grow, it offers a successful example of how to increase diversity in nursing and potentially improve the health outcomes of Native Americans living on and nearby reservation communities.

The Lived Experience of DACA Recipients Who Are US Nursing Program Graduates and Their Pathways to Professional Licensure: A Phenomenological Study

AIM

This phenomenological study explored the experiences of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients who are nursing program graduates in the United States and their pathways to professional licensure.

BACKGROUND

DACA is a federal program facilitating lawful employment and higher education to qualified US immigrants. Understanding the experience of DACA recipients who have become registered nurses will inform nurse educators' advocacy to create a more diverse nursing workforce.

METHOD

DACA recipients ( n = 17) who were US nursing program graduates were interviewed to explore the phenomenon of a pathway to professional licensure.

RESULTS

The pathway to professional licensure emerged within four themes: pursuing the dream, finding support, figuring it out, and advocating for others.

CONCLUSION

To contribute to a diverse nursing workforce, the authors recommend that nurse educators advocate for policies to support DACA recipients who graduate from US nursing programs to achieve professional nursing licensure.

Diversity Practices for Hiring the New Graduate Nurse

A multistep selection process was established to assist in securing top talent while achieving diversity objectives for a nurse residency program. The selection process incorporated objective scoring tools, diverse panel interviews, unconscious bias training, and standardized interview questions to decrease unconscious and implicit bias. As a result, the entry-level nursing workforce has become more diversified by race, gender, age, and academic training.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Nursing: The Pathway to Excellence Framework Alignment

The promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in nursing is a topic of renewed importance, given the civil unrest following the death of George Floyd and identified disparities in health and health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite its progress, the nursing profession continues to struggle with recruiting and retaining a workforce that represents the cultural diversity of the patient population. The authors completed a review of the literature on DEI in nursing and found a scarcity of studies, and that a limitation exists due to the strength of the evidence examined. This article aims to provide a review of the literature on DEI in nursing, outcomes and strategies associated with organizational DEI efforts, and knowledge on how the American Nurses Credentialing Center Pathway to Excellence® Designation Program framework supports DEI initiatives. The authors further provided recommendations for nurse leaders and a checklist of proposed questions for assessing commitment, culture, and structural empowerment initiatives toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization.

2020 Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Workforce Survey: An Executive Summary

BACKGROUND

The National Association of Neonatal Nurse Practitioners (NANNP) partnered with the National Certification Corporation (NCC) to invite all NCC-certified neonatal nurse practitioners (NNPs) to participate in a national survey on NNP compensation, workforce environment, and satisfaction measures.

PURPOSE

To understand the current NNP compensation, benefits, and workforce environment.

METHODS

An anonymous survey was sent to 6558 board-certified NNPs with 845 respondents.

RESULTS

Most of the survey respondents (92%) are in direct patient care (n = 804) with 83% (n=703) working full time (35 hours or more). Those NNPs with less than 5 years' experience had a mean salary of $119,000 per year while more experienced NNPs (30-plus years) earned a mean salary of $134,000 per year. Half of the NNPs (51%) report high satisfaction with their scope of practice and role in their organization. Distribution of NNPs throughout the workforce is suboptimal, with 67% of the administrators indicating they do not have enough NNPs.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH

The 2020 NANNP workforce survey collected information on NNP compensation, benefits, work environment, and experiences. It identified areas of satisfaction, such as compensation with bonuses and pay increases, and acknowledged areas needing improvement such as the lack of diversity within the profession. Utilizing the results of the survey will help create a more diverse, well-educated, and informed workforce to ensure culturally competent NNPs remain relevant within the healthcare system.