The Increasing Demand for Nurses in California

In California there is a growing need for nurses, the core principles of economics have shaped the current demand for qualified medical practitioners. There is no secret about nursing shortages in medical facilities because there is constant press about the nurses union struggling with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on the nurse to patient ratio. Governor Schwarzenegger suspended the law which required one nurse per five patients in order to balance the budget of California. Nurses have not been compensated for increased stress due to the suspension of this law. Salary structure in California is based strictly on geographical location, education, and experience. Salaries vary from county to county, medical facilities to private HMOs; typically private medical facilities pay more since they are non-government funded agencies. There is a continuing effort to recruit nurses, but the supply issues still have not been addressed. Some speculate there is not broad appeal to enter the nursing profession because there is approximately a $20,000 difference between an experienced nurse and nurse just entering the field (Salary.com, 2007.)

The seventh principle of economics states, "Governments Can Improve Market Outcomes." The Governor of California has created negative publicity for the profession of nursing by being involved in heated disputes over salary and patient care. In 1999, a nurse to patient ratio was created by former Governor Gray Davis. The law went into affect in 2004, when Governor Schwarzenegger went into office, he did not enforce the law strongly due to the budget crisis California was in. Governor Schwarzenegger commented about the 1999 law, "We don't have enough nurses- nor can the hospitals afford that." (Arnold Schwarzenegger, 2004) This created chaos in medical facilities, and affected patient care. There have been strikes on and off since Governor Schwarzenegger took office because nurses are continuing to receive the same pay for doing more work. Today the budget of California is balanced, and the situation remains the same as it was in 2004.