LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Nationwide, hospitals are facing a nursing shortage that is not expected to be resolved soon. Federal data from the National Institute of Health projects over 275,000 additional nurses will be needed in the U.S. by 2030.
“We have about 208 vacancies all together for nursing services, so that includes registered nurses, LPNs and nursing assistants. We are targeting about 50 vacancies today for the registered nurses just to highlight that, and we are also trying to get LPNs—the licensed practical nurses—for all areas,” Lauren Hamilton, the medical center’s nurse recruiter and retention specialist said.
On Wednesday, Nov. 2, the Robley Rex VA Medical Center hosted a job fair to help fill some of those open positions. RNs, licensed practical nurses and nursing assistants were encouraged to apply.
The VA is offering $12,000 sign-on bonuses for RNs and $6,000 bonuses for LPNs.
While the job fair is over, candidates can learn more about applying here.
One person who’s already been accepted is November Taylor. Taylor is a recent graduate of Sullivan University and found out about the open positions after staff from the VA visited her school.
Taylor spent around a decade as a social worker before making a change that would send her back to school for a second degree.
“I always just wanted to be a nurse. It’s been a dream of mine and I had the opportunity to go to school and I did it and now I’m doing it for real,” Taylor said.
Taylor will work in the hospital’s Med Surge Unit.
“We have a lot of nurses reaching retirement age so we know that over the next couple of years, we’re going to have even more vacancies,” Hamilton said, highlighting one of the reasons they are recruiting recent graduates.
Recently they’ve increased their recruiting efforts, which includes visiting area nursing programs at universities, including at Sullivan. VA staff meets with students and helps dispel myths they may have about working at the VA.
“We do hire new graduates. We have an amazing training program that we do with them for their first year so that they are able to actually get up to speed. They are not taken out of that program and taking care of our veterans until they are fully competent,” Hamilton said.
With competitive pay, benefits and opportunities to work all across the county, hiring events like this aim to ensure veterans will always have something there to care for them.
The VA’s health care division, the Veteran’s Health Administration, will need to hire around 52,000 employees over the next five years to keep pace with the increase in demand for care. Many of those are frontline health care workers. To help fill those positions, they are hosting a nationwide hiring event beginning the week of November 14.