Identifying and Describing Nurse Faculty Workload Issues: A Looming Faculty Shortage

AIM: The purpose of this project was to address factors contributing to the nurse faculty shortage. BACKGROUND: There is a demonstrated need to sustain and stabilize faculty currently in the workforce to avoid exacerbating the current and future faculty shortage in nursing. Recommendations of previous studies focus on strategies for recruitment, retention, and ongoing faculty development. METHOD: A survey was employed to identify and describe the workload of nurse faculty and identify the impact of retirement and other retention issues. RESULTS: Findings showed an aging and nondiverse nursing faculty with increased and variable workload. There was no standard means of calculating workload. With identification of increased workload, faculty are considering retirement at a higher than projected rate. CONCLUSION: Four primary areas to address the nursing faculty shortage include focus on diversity balance, development of collaborative positions (joint appointments), and clear identification of nursing faculty workload.