A recent study suggests nurses whose first baccalaureate degree was in something other than nursing might be an efficient
solution to the current nursing shortage. The study, published in the Journal of Professional Nursing, was the result of a 16-page survey given to 953 newly licensed RNs from 35 states, with questions about their work settings,
how they felt about their jobs, and whether they planned to stay at their current jobs. Respondents had been licensed five
to 18 months. The study found that second-degree nurses were usually older, more motivated, and more likely to stay in their
jobs. Those nurses generally had developed coping mechanisms in their previous careers that first-degree nurses lack, the
researchers wrote.
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