New Graduate Nurses: A Case Study

Approximately 20% of the United States “Baby Boomer’s” will be over the age of 65 years old. In 2013 there was a total of 44.7 million adults aged 65 and older in the US. Maryland’s population is approximately 6.5 million with 22% the population at age 65 and older by 2030 ("Administration on Aging," 2014, p. 10). Despite the growing number of older adults there is a shortage of registered nurses working in clinical environments that service this population. New graduate nurses often have negative attitudes toward working in environments that are heavily populated with seniors. As the number of older adults increase the demand for nurses will likely increase in all inpatient and outpatient care settings. Nurse education programs provide students
with an array of knowledge and skills that prepare them for the workforce.