Debra Levine, a registered nurse, has lots of patients in the emergency department at St. Agnes Hospital. Mostly are 55 years old and above. Her skills limit her role in diagnosing, prescribing and developing treatment plans for her patients. Levine plans to work harder to fill in the boundaries in her job and become a solution to the growing needs for gerontological nurses. At the age of 25 it’s a dream come true for Levine because of her interest in the aging population and because of the new combined adult and gerontological nurse master’s program at the University of Maryland School of Nursing. According to U.S. census data, by 2050 there will be a probable increase in 65-and-older population. The expected increase is 87 million, 2 1/2 times the number in 2000. Whenever there is an increase in the aging population, the shortage of nurses also increases.

From a story of a Filipino nurse in Australia, he advised potential overseas contract workers to be careful when transacting with recruiters and employers to prevent applicants to become victims of sweet talks. According to Jason, applicants must be careful.

Kilatisin lang sila ng mabuti. Use your common sense.. kung ang mga sinasabi nila ay matamis na matamis, may alat 'yan, he added.

Jason once dreamed of working in Australia because he believed that the pay is good and the quality of life there is better. Australia is his dream workplace where there is laid-back lifestyle. He also finds it a nice destination.

According to the UVA School of Nursing, by 2014 more than 1.2 million nurses will be needed in hospitals all over the country. With this issue, nurses are not the only hunted profession, their teachers, too, are requested.
 
At the UVA Medical Center, nurses were pressured by the shortage, and hospital officials stated that it could be worse. UVA don’t really have a shortage according to Dr. Pamela Cipriano, UVA’s Health System’s chief clinical officer and chief nursing officer. They may have some areas where they are still recruiting, but they feel very fortunate to have staffing in all of their areas. There are currently 164 nursing vacancies in UVA Hospital that, when filled, would join the 2,040 registered nurses and 110 licensed practical nurses already working. The major concern of hospital officials is to keep the ones they already have. The hospital offers competitive benefits package to attract nurses. This package includes an on-site child care center, sign-on bonuses based from the specialization of a nurse. Traveller nurses are being called when there is urgent need for backup.

The Government gives further attention to nursing profession not only to retain nurses in the public sector but also to produce high turn out of such personnel. With RM70 million budget this 2009, the amount will be allocated for the training of 5,600 nurses in colleges under the Health Ministry, and 2,000 nurses in private training colleges.

According to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, graduates in interconnected science courses will be allowed to continue a nursing occupation by undertaking one-and-a-half-year diploma in nursing instead of the usual three years to supply the increasing demand for nurses. In analyzing the budget yesterday, he said the position of assistant nurses will be promoted to community nurses after they have completed the six-month nursing program. He also added that to be able to support the development of regional health tourism in the Northern Corridor Economic Region, the Government will give a launching grant of RM30mil to launch an industry-based and non-profit training centre. In addition to this, the incentive grant for medical specialists would be increased to maintain them in the civic sector. About 3,800 specialists will be dealing with this mission with an additional expenditure of RM26mil.