In an effort to address the growing nursing shortage in Oregon, and beyond, a bipartisan team of lawmakers has joined forces to introduce legislation aimed at increasing the number of nurse educators. The Nurse Faculty Shortage Reduction Act, if passed, would provide $28.5 million annually in grants over a five-year period to support nursing schools in hiring and retaining faculty members, as reported by the office of Rep. Suzanne Bonamici.
The urgency of the situation is underlined by a survey from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, which showed that almost 92,000 qualified nursing program applicants were turned away in 2021, due to the lack of faculty among other issues. In Oregon, a mere four out of 21 nursing programs could accept more than 50% of qualified applicants according to, a study by the Oregon Longitudinal Data Collaborative obtained by News from the States.
The nursing shortage hits particularly hard at home – Oregon could require as many as 21,600 more registered nurses to adequately care for its patient population. Kevin Mealy, a spokesman for the Oregon Nurses Association, emphasized the gravity of the shortage, "Without more nurse faculty, we won't be able to educate enough nurses to provide the care Oregonians need," as reported.
Attracting nursing faculty presents its own set of challenges, less than 15% of registered nurses in Oregon hold a master’s degree necessary for teaching, and those who do step into academia face a substantial pay cut. Nursing faculty in Oregon earn nearly $49,000 less than those in a clinical setting – making it an unappealing career shift for many. "It's extremely difficult to convince nurses to spend years getting an advanced degree, and going deeper into student debt, in order to make much less than they’re making now," Mealy explained to News from the States.
The proposed legislation has received backing from a variety of stakeholders, including the Oregon Nurses Association, the American Nurses Association, and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. The grant program set forth in the bill would be open to nursing schools such as the University of Portland, George Fox University in Newberg, and Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, with priority given to programs that serve vulnerable populations and aim to recruit and retain faculty from underrepresented backgrounds.
The initiative, co-sponsored by Rep. Bonamici who hails from Oregon’s 1st Congressional District, has found support across the aisle with Republican Reps. David Joyce of Ohio and Jennifer Kiggans of Virginia, along with Democrat Rep. Lauren Underwood of Illinois, both of whom have nursing backgrounds. The Senate companion bill was introduced by Senators Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, and Republican Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, stressing the bipartisan nature of this pressing health care issue.
