How nursing colleges can address three trends in practical nursing

One of the biggest issues facing higher education today is declining student enrollment. There are many reasons behind the decline: a smaller pool of college-age students, more educational options such as boot camps and apprenticeships and, of course, choice. More potential students are choosing alternative paths to the workforce. In fact, 75% of Generation Z say a four-year college degree is not the only path to success.

U.S. News and World Report even ranks the top careers that do not require a four-year degree. Vocational Nursing ranks among the top 10 of this list and for good reason. The profession is growing faster than average at 5% per year and boasts a median salary of $54,620 annually. The educational requirement is a certificate that many nursing schools deliver in 16 months. Requirements and scope of practice vary by state, but in general, Vocational and Practical Nursing are a terrific entry into the nursing profession.

Emerging Areas of Focus

In the context of nursing pathways, we next explore three emerging trends within Practical and Vocational Nursing. These are critical skills to develop now and as a nurse progresses in their career.

Telehealth

Telehealth’s popularity skyrocketed during the pandemic to receive healthcare without leaving home, and now that patients have tasted the convenience, there is no going back. It’s also opened doors for those who live in rural and underserved areas where healthcare providers are in extremely short supply. “Telehealth allows small rural hospitals and clinics to provide quality healthcare services locally and at lower costs, which benefits rural patients since they are no longer required to travel long distances to access specialty care."

For years, much emphasis has been placed on building in-person relationships with patients. This is especially true of nursing. We believe nursing colleges that can integrate the needed telehealth skills into their curriculum will greatly advance the nursing profession. “It is time to embrace this new paradigm and prepare nurses not to just support telehealth efforts but to take the lead in its integration within healthcare.”

“Technical skills are necessary to effectively use telehealth technology and peripherals such as Bluetooth stethoscopes and high-definition cameras to collect and deliver data to providers, but it’s ensuring that the care still conveys empathy and compassion that should be emphasized in nursing programs,” stated Michelle Zautner, Director of Nursing at Concorde’s Kansas City campus.

Bilingual Nurses

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 21.6% of people in the United States speak a language other than English at home, which is about 1 in every 5 adults. Is it any wonder bilingual nurses are in such high demand?

Research has shown that language barriers are associated with lower quality of healthcare and poorer health outcomes. When patients and care providers can speak the same language, misunderstandings over a medical situation, medical labels or proper use of prescriptions are reduced. An additional benefit of language concordance is that patients may feel a level of increased trust and satisfaction with their provider.

Adding language courses as a requirement within a nursing program can be quite challenging as the curriculum is already intense and packed with the required learning outcomes. However, several add-on courses and certificates have been developed recently that students can take as part of ongoing education upon completing a nursing program. They range in length and price, but you can even find free options such as Coursera’s Spanish for Successful Communication in Healthcare Settings.

Virtual Training and Mentoring

In the post-pandemic world, discussions related to solving first-year nursing turnover are back as a top priority. According to the NSI National Healthcare Retention Report, each percentage change in nursing turnover will cost/save the average hospital $400k per year. In our view, adding ongoing mentoring and support for new nursing graduates is an obvious next step. Perhaps even more obvious, nursing colleges are uniquely positioned to deliver this support. They have relationships with nursing alumni and proven faculty who can deliver training and mentoring in a virtual setting.

Calling vs. Sparked Interest

Nursing is often described as a “calling.” Nurses themselves often say it's all they ever wanted to do and all they considered for a profession. But what if we could use both the elements of being called to nursing and some general interest in things like technology/telehealth or languages to draw more people into considering becoming nurses?

Recall the opening to this article and the attitudes of Generation Z towards education. At a time when more students are interested in alternative paths, they also don’t feel like they have the tools needed to make a good choice. According to new research from American Student Assistance & Jobs for the Future, “65% of Generation Z students fear the risk of choosing the wrong post-secondary path.” Let’s put aside that risk aversion is the hallmark of Gen Z and focus on solutions to this very solvable problem.

Career exploration tools that match interests and abilities to career paths are an excellent starting point. “Our AI-driven platform provides the tools needed for students to make informed decisions. It starts with exploration, matches with the education needed for a role and even provides personalized career information (such as average salary) based on an individual's geographic location,” said Jarlath O’Carroll, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Higher-Ed company Jobspeaker.

When we think of using these trends in nursing to attract more people to the profession, it opens up another avenue to solving the nursing shortage and bringing a more diverse and equitable workforce to healthcare. A win-win-win.