Originally published in American Nurse Journal

Bakewell-Sachs, S., Trautman, D., & Rosseter, R. | July 2022

The nurse faculty shortage requires urgent and coordinated action. The National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice’s 17th annual report emphasizes that the gap between the supply and demand for nurse faculty will continue to grow, necessitating bold and creative solutions.

A key focus is increasing faculty diversity to ensure the nursing workforce reflects the communities it serves. Currently, only 17.3% of nursing faculty are from underrepresented groups.

Key takeaways from this report include:

• The Future of Nursing 2020–2030 report advocates for enhanced recruitment, support, and mentoring of diverse faculty and calls for reevaluating the separation between education and clinical practice.
• Academic–practice partnerships can help bridge the gap by allowing clinical nurses to serve as educators and providing faculty with clinical practice opportunities.
• Some schools are hiring non-nurse experts to broaden perspectives and enhance interprofessional learning.
• Addressing the shortage requires collaboration between nursing schools, healthcare leaders, legislators, and other stakeholders, as well as initiatives like advocating for federal funding and promoting faculty development.

Bakewell-Sachs, S., Trautman, D., & Rosseter, R. (2022). Addressing the nurse faculty shortage. American Nurse Journal. https://www.myamericannurse.com/addressing-the-nurse-faculty-shortage-2/.