Move over radio talk show doctor, your registered nurse is here to take the microphone; at least in San Francisco where a new program called "Nurse Talk" recently hit the airways. The program is designed to provide news, information, and general awareness about the nursing profession and where it stands today. It's hosted by two nursing professionals who have more than 30 years experience between them. And although they try to keep the show light and humorous, it deals with very serious subject matter.
More than just dispensing a bit of advice and giving registered nurses a venue to speak their mind, Nurse Talk provides a way to make San Francisco residents aware of what's happening in the nursing industry. So far the only other market airing the program is Boston. However, the show's creators are working on syndication and hope to get the program in many more markets around the country.
Help With Recruiting
Although recruiting new people to enter the nursing field is not the primary focus of Nurse Talk, it may be one of the extra side benefits. Like some other professions that have been traditionally thought of as being lower on the socioeconomic scale, nursing may be suffering somewhat from misconceptions about what it entails.
Exacerbating this might also be the fact that most media reports dealing with registered nurse jobs only talk about the negative. We hear plenty about how registered nurses are overworked, stressed, and underpaid, but we rarely hear about the success stories of the patients they've helped and the satisfaction they get from a job well done.
Having a radio show devoted to the nursing industry gives a voice to nurses of all levels and helps them get the word out about their chosen profession. For many, despite the stress and difficulty of nursing, they wouldn't give it up for the world. What drives many nurses to continue on is the desire to help people. This is the kind of thing that can encourage others to think about registered nurse jobs - if the radio program will talk about it.
Other "Marketing" Strategies
In order to encourage more individuals to enter the nursing industry, other creative marketing strategies are being employed. For example, in Canada a program has been established which pays nurses assistants and LPNs extra if they are willing to continue their education to become registered nurses. And these individuals are not promised pay later on; they get paid right now as they're learning. It remains to be seen if the program will be successful, but proponents say at least it's a start.
Medical facilities and private staffing agencies in the United States are using similar tactics to encourage more people to look into RN jobs. Between financial aid for education, extra benefits paid to RNs, and a host of other things, the powers that we are doing everything they can to increase the number of working nurses. So until the shortage ends, keep an ear open for Nurse Talk.
