Nursing shortage in Wyoming continues

by Maya Shimizu Harris

Casper Star-Tribune

Via Wyoming News Exchange

CASPER — Nursing staff shortages persist in Wyoming. But there are a number of ways people are trying to turn that around. 

Nationwide nursing shortages preceded the pandemic. COVID-19 just made it a lot worse. 

A June 2021 survey by the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living found that up to 94% of nursing homes and 81% of assisted-living communities had experienced staff shortages in the prior month. 

“One of the most frightening and immediate areas of shortage is occurring in Wyoming long-term care and assisted living facilities with a lack of (Certified Nursing Assistants),” said Lori Hart, Wyoming State Board of Nursing Executive Director. 

Hart said she spoke to a nurse during the peak of COVID who was part of a two-person staff managing a 24/7 emergency room. 

“Most of us are understanding when Arby’s has to close early because they don’t have enough staff . What happens when a rural ER faces this issue? A long term care unit?” she asked. “In the light of public safety, nurses pushed past personal exhaustion and did what had to be done.” 

Some nurses, she said, turn to substance abuse to cope with the workload. 

There are a number of ways to tackle nursing shortages. Hart said joining the Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) Compact, which was created in 2020, could help. 

That would allow advanced practice registered nurses to hold one multi-state license. They could use that license in any of the states that are part of the compact. 

Right now only three states have joined: Utah, North Dakota and Delaware. The compact won’t be enacted until there are seven member states. 

“This is an important area to consider in the next few years to assure seamless transition between states (including telehealth),” Hart said. 

Wyoming already has experience with compacts. It joined the Nursing Licensure Compact in 2018. The idea is pretty much the same; now Wyoming nurses can have one license to practice in any compact state. To date, 39 states have joined. 

Wyoming Hospital Association President Eric Boley said these compacts have been “successful as all get out,” particularly for bringing in more nurses during the pandemic. 

Another obvious solution to address nursing shortages is upping nurse salaries. 

Monster. com lists a median salary of $15.41 an hour, so for a 40 hour week, that would come out to be over $30,000 per year. Salary.com says they earn about $28,600 a year. 

Intuit estimates that the average annual salary for CNAs in Wyoming is about $27,500. To compare, the average wage at Walmart is $16.40, which comes out to be about $34,000 a year. 

Another part of the solution may be increasing salaries for nurse educators, who often earn less than practicing nurses despite their required master’s degree. 

Some states have passed legislation to retain and recruit nurse educators. Washington, for example, passed a 2019 bill that appropriated $60.8 million toward increasing nurse educator and high-demand program faculty salaries at community and technical colleges. 

That was after the Washington Center for Nursing and the Council of Nursing Education in Washington State found low pay to be the primary reason nurse educators thought about leaving their positions, according to an article from the Washington State Nurses Association. At the time, more than 800 qualified nursing school applicants were turned away each year because of faculty shortages. 

Increasing salaries could help Wyoming tap into its pool of unemployed or part-time nurses. 

The Wyoming State Board of Nursing and Wyoming Workforce Services partnered during the pandemic to try to identify nurses who had worked less than 4 quarters in 2020. They made a list that could help facilities find nurses and CNAs who might not be working. 

“Nurses and CNAs both in Wyoming and across the nation are experiencing extreme fatigue as well as frustration in their jobs,” Hart said. “Perhaps an equally important question to consider is what can Wyoming do to keep licensed nurses and certified CNAs providing care?”