Clinical Review
Retaining Experienced VA Nurses: Their Own Perspectives
Fed Pract. 2007 December;24(12):23
Author and Disclosure Information
Alex Lozada, MSN, RN, CPAN, Arleen Sakamoto, MSN, RN, CNOR, and Martha Buffum, DNSc, APRN, BC, CS
Mr. Lozada is a staff nurse II in the postanesthesia care and conscious sedation units of the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC) and an adjunct professor at the University of San Francisco School of Nursing, both in San Francisco, CA. He is also a major in the U.S. Air Force Reserves, in which he serves as a critical care air transport nurse and the deputy chief of education and training for the 349th Medical Squadron, Travis Air Force Base, CA. MsSakamoto is a staff nurse II in the surgical services at the SFVAMC and a lieutenant commander, retired, from the U.S. Navy Reserves, Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, CA. Dr. Buffum is the associate chief of nursing service for research at the SFVAMC and an associate clinical professor at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing.
As the Baby Boomers swiftly approach retirement age, the current nursing shortage is on the verge of a dramatic and devastating escalation. This pilot study explores how older nurses, whose experience and skills are invaluable to the nursing workforce, could be encouraged to prolong their careers.