Nursing shortage may worsen within decade By Mary Weaver Director of Family and Community Health

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1 Nursing shortage may worsen within decade By Mary Weaver Director of Family and Community Health What do the Iowa Council of Nurses, the Iowa Hospital Association, the Iowa Senate and House, the Governor of Iowa, the Iowa CareGivers Association, the State Board of Health and U.S. Senate Bill 706 have in common? They are all studying the nursing shortage and the potential impact it will have on Iowans and the nation. The Iowa Department of Public Health has a responsibility to ensure that as one of the essential public health services, a competent and adequate workforce exists to assure health services. For that reason, the State Board of Health passed a resolution on May 9 asking the Governor and department to pursue and respond to recommendations to alleviate the shortage. The Iowa Council of Nurses (ICON), composed of representatives from the Iowa Organization of Nurse Leaders, Iowa League of Nursing, Iowa Community College Nursing Education Directors Association, Iowa Association of College of Nursing, Iowa Organization of Associate Degree Nurses, and the Iowa Nurses Association, estimate there are 2,700 current RN vacancies in Iowa. There are also vacancies for 700 LPNs and 2,700 assisting personnel. What s more, By 2009, 64 percent of the current actively licensed RNs will either be retired or over the age of 65. The number of graduates from RN and LPN educational programs has decreased 27 percent over the past six years. By 2010, 49 percent of the faculty from RN educational programs plan to retire. This is not just an Iowa issue. As of March 2000, a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) report of the Registered Nurse Population indicated only a 5.4 percent increase in the total RN population. This was the lowest increase reported in previous 1

2 national surveys. Also, the average age of the RN was estimated to be 45.2, nearly one year older than the average in According to the Iowa Board of Nursing, just over 3,000 nurses will reach retirement age by Bonnie Wiltse, project director for the ICON, Nursing Workforce Initiative, indicates that December 2000 data from the Iowa Board of Nursing shows 38,359 registered nurses and 9,357 LPNs with active licenses. However, only 31,838 RNs and 6,745 LPNs are currently employed in nursing. Of these, only 50 percent of the RNs and 52 percent of LPNs are working full time. The newly appointed Governor s Task Force on the Nursing Shortage will address all of these facts and examine the underlying reasons surrounding the shortage. The Task Force will be led by co-chairs Dr. Richard Ryan, president of Des Moines University, and Bonnie Wiltse, M.P.H., ICON project director. The Task Force has 15 members representing nursing education, employers, consumers, and nurses. Gov. Vilsack s commission is to examine and evaluate the actual and potential shortage of direct health-care providers, and to develop recommendations to relieve the shortage. The expectation is that the recommendations will include the private sector and Iowa citizens, as well as the federal government. The Governor has requested that the recommendations be completed by September 2001 to allow incorporation into the Iowa Health Enterprise Plan. The first meeting will be held June 13 at 10:30 a.m. at Des Moines University. The meetings are open to the public, and additional information may be obtained by calling AIDS still a threat to Iowans By Kevin Teale IDPH Communications Director 2

3 World public health officials are marking the 20 th anniversary this week of the first reported cases of AIDS. In Iowa, over 1,300 residents have been diagnosed with the disease over the past two decades and half of them have died. Nearly 400 more Iowans have been diagnosed with HIV since that disease first became reportable in the state in July During that 20-year period, 90 percent of Iowa counties have had at least one resident diagnosed with AIDS. "This epidemic is not going away," said Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, Iowa state epidemiologist. "This disease is something Iowa health professionals will be working with for a long time." Preliminary national data suggest the rate of HIV infection in young Americans is rising. Since Iowa has only three years of HIV infection data, it is too early to see if that trend is being repeated here. However, those who work with AIDS and HIV-infected Iowans on a daily basis say there are some misunderstandings among people of high risk. "The new drug treatments that prolong life for AIDS patients aren't fully understood by some," said Pat Young, state HIV/AIDS program manager. "There's a false assumption the treatments make it impossible to spread the infection, even if you continue to engage in high risk sexual behaviors. History has shown that prevention efforts do work, and those efforts must continue." Dr. Quinlisk said that while improvements to treatment are important, treatment alone will not stop the spread of the illness. "We need to stop the transmission of the virus," she said. Both praised the efforts of community-based coalitions across the state in dealing with the epidemic. "Community response in fighting an illness such as this is very important," Young said. "The collaborative efforts between health officials and the infected community has been unprecedented." 3

4 The latest statistics about AIDS/HIV in Iowa have been posted on the IDPH web site at: Summer food safety made easy By Kim Brunette, MPH IDPH Epidemiologist With warm summer temperatures come cookouts, picnics, hikes, camping trips and food-borne illnesses. The biggest concerns for summer food preparation are the length of time and the temperature at which foods are allowed to sit, the temperature at which they are cooked, and the availability of hand washing. Before preparing food, make sure that you wash your hands and all utensils with hot soapy water. Also, many foods should be marinated in the refrigerator. Finally, you should thaw meat or poultry in the refrigerator, not on the counter. When planning your summer feast, keep these points in mind: Take on a picnic only the amount of food you ll use. Salads with store-bought mayonnaise are safe if kept cold. Avoid creamy or custard foods. If there is no cooler to store food, take fruits, vegetables, hard cheese, canned or dried meats or fish, dry cereal, bread, peanut butter, or crackers. If you are taking your food on the road, begin packing cold food right from the refrigerator. Always use an insulated cooler with a cold source. It is preferable to keep beverages and water in a cooler separate from the rest of the cold food. This keeps the perishable food safer because the drink cooler is opened more frequently. Hot foods can be kept hot with a thermos or insulated dish. Once you re packed, put the ice chest in the passenger area of the car. It s much cooler than the trunk in the summertime. On arrival, put the cooler in the shade and keep the lid on. Replenish ice if it begins to melt. 4

5 If you are grilling, keep food cold until cooking. Be sure to cook thoroughly ground beef to 160 degrees, chicken breasts or cutlets to 170, pork to 160, hot dogs to 165, veal, beef, lamb, and steak to 145. Use a clean plate for serving cooked food. Finally, be careful that raw meat juices don t touch other food. When serving, food should never sit out for over an hour. With this in mind, serve smaller portions. If there are leftovers, place them inside the cooler as soon as the meal is over. If there is still ice in the cooler when you get home, and the food didn t sit out, the food can be served again. Use your head: Wear a helmet By Debbi Cooper IDPH Community Health Consultant Bicycles are associated with more childhood injuries than any other consumer product except motor vehicles, and head injury is the leading cause of death in bicycle crashes. All that could change if more riders wore helmets. Of the 67 million bicycle riders in the United States, 40 percent (26.8 million) are children ages 14 and under. Each year, about 900 bicyclists die and more than a half-million are injured seriously enough to go the hospital emergency room. Still, according to a survey released in 1999 by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the McDonald s Corporation, only about 50 percent of bicycle riders in the U.S. regularly wear bike helmets. Not only do bicyclists of all ages need always to wear helmets when biking, they also need to make sure their helmets fit properly. Helmets should be worn low on the forehead, about two finger widths above the eyebrows. They should sit evenly between the ears and flat on the head. Tighten the chinstraps and adjust the pads inside so 5

6 the helmet feels snug and secure and doesn t move up and down or from side to side. Use your head by wearing a helmet and insist your children follow your example. It can not only reduce the severity of any head injuries you may suffer, it can save your life. 6