Meeting Present and Future Demand for Nursing and Teaching Professionals in Metro Milwaukee

Abstract

The Employment and Training Institute conducted an analysis of the nursing and teaching work force in Wisconsin using data obtained from the Department of Regulation and Licensing for registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses(LPNs) and from the Department of Public Instruction for licensed public school teachers. U.S. Census data were used to examine growth in numbers of college educated adults in Wisconsin. The analysis focuses primarily on professionals residing in the Milwaukee metro area, including Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington, and Waukesha counties. The data show fewer women seeking out nursing and teaching, threatening the supply of nurses and teachers in the state. While the number of women in Wisconsin with a college education has increased numerically and as a percent of the adult population 25 years and over, the percentage of women entering teaching and nursing has declined dramatically as women seek out other career options. Compounding this problem are the increasing numbers of professionals who retire or leave nursing and teaching for other careers, as well as the aging of the teaching and nursing populations, a factor that will radically impact employment separations in the next five to ten years.