Rutgers Nursing Dean Can Discuss Nursing Education, Faculty Shortages

(NEWARK) -- Nursing colleges and universities turned away more than 32,000 qualified applicants from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs last year due to a diminishing supply of nursing faculty, according to a survey of 590 nursing schools in the United States conducted by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Compared to academic positions, health care jobs offer much better salaries. Without adequate funding academic institutions are at a disadvantage in recruiting nurses into graduate programs to replenish aging nursing faculty.

The following expert from the College of Nursing at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, can comment:

FELISSA R. LASHLEY is the dean and professor of Rutgers University College of Nursing and an expert on genetics, infectious diseases, HIV/AIDS care and nursing education.

She is a board certified Ph.D. medical geneticist by the American Board of Medical Genetics and an AIDS certified registered nurse. Lashley is a past president of the HIV/AIDS Nursing Certification Board (HANCB). She is also the director of the Nursing Center for Bioterrorism and Infectious Diseases. Lashley is widely published on this subject and is the editor of the book Emerging Infectious Disease: Trends and Issues, which received the 2002 Book of the Year award from the American Journal of Nursing and was lauded as an invaluable resource for healthcare professionals. Her book, co-edited with Jerry D. Durham, The Person With AIDS: Nursing Perspectives is going into its fourth edition.

Among her other books is Clinical Genetics in Nursing Practice, which has just been released in May in the third edition.

She was recently inducted into the Illinois State University College of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame and received the Woman of Excellence award from the New Jersey Women and AIDS Network.

Dean Lasley can discuss:

Nursing education

Nursing faculty shortage

Nursing roles and shortages