DES MOINES, Iowa — On Friday, Iowa Congressman Zach Nunn announced legislation to address what he's calling a nursing shortage across the United States.
Nunn said his Train More Nurses Act is not only going to increase the number of new nurses across the nation, but also retain the faculty who train them.
Nearly 60% of survey respondents in a 2020 State of Iowa nursing report said there is a shortage of qualified job applicants for nursing positions.
"One challenge in growing the nursing workforce to meet this demand not just in Iowa, but as I highlighted nationwide, is the limited supply of nursing education facilities available to train the next generation and the faculty who provide them,” Nunn said.
The act would call on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to use grants to address nursing faculty shortages at nursing schools, which he said would help train more nurses.
"This legislation helps us create a stronger, more resilient healthcare system writ large, and also can help drive down the cost for health care across the country,” Nunn said.
UnityPoint Des Moines said they've seen a shortage of nurses in recent years, especially following the pandemic.
“People who were close to retirement decided to retire early,” said Denise Cundy, chief nursing officer with UnityPoint. “Some people were just a little disillusioned and left the profession together. We also saw people just re-evaluating work-life balance."
Luckily, things are starting to improve.
"We're bringing in probably twice as many newly licensed nurses this year as we did probably three years ago,” Cundy said. “So that's a very positive thing. We're just making sure now that we're able to get them the support they need and get them up to speed."
Cundy believes the new policy would be helpful.
“Any support that we could have, from a legislative standpoint to improve anything in bringing more nurses into the profession and getting them trained adequately would be very welcome," she said.
The Iowa Health Care Association said RN graduation rates in the state have decreased by 1.5% over the last decade.