How Would You Encourage Individuals
from Underrepresented Populations to
Choose Nursing as a Career?
Martha Phillips

Nursing is an occupation that speaks to a basic human response, one that crosses all racial and ethnic lines: the desire to care for others. Through service, we propagate a self-nurturing cycle. We give our knowledge to others, they teach us through their experiences; we help them to heal, they help us understand the process; we empower our patients through our teaching, and they, through their healing, validate our skills. Nursing can provide a profound sense of purpose, something that many people seek throughout their lives. And although there are many other benefits to a career in nursing, these are reasons enough to become a nurse.

However, we face a critical shortage of minority nurses. The knowledge and innate cultural competence of minority nurses are so important in bridging “standard” western medicine and differing cultural practices. And because we do not have such practitioners, culturally and ethnically diverse groups are under-served. Unfortunately, data trends indicate that these minority and under-represented groups — the ones least served well by medicine today — are the most chronically ill populations. The bottom line is we need minority nurses and we need them badly.

It’s obvious that bringing minority nurses into the universities and the profession is a huge task. We must increase enrollment in bachelor’s and associate’s degree nursing programs across the country. To do that, we must ensure students are graduating from high school prepared for and interested in obtaining a college degree. But to do that, we must prepare for that goal as early as middle school. Encouraging minority and under-represented students to join nursing is not a matter of improving recruitment techniques but of becoming involved in the education process at an early stage.

Middle school students are at an important juncture in their education. They are making choices about a high-school curriculum but are unsure of opportunities available in the future, or how to prepare for them academically. The idea of nursing must be introduced at this point, and concrete guidelines provided that will enable students to graduate from high school prepared for college.

To facilitate this, I propose creating a program that not only focuses on education, but also encourages involvement at every level. This stepwise progression has three tiers: Volunteer, Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), and Student Nurse-Mentor.

At the Volunteer level, simple yet effective ideas and goals are presented when students are most willing and able to accept them. First, middle school students are introduced to the concept of nursing. Dynamic programs sponsored by nursing schools address the most fundamental ideas of nursing. Students get involved through interactive discussion questions:

• What is nursing? Do you know any nurses?
• What do nurses do? Who do they work with?
• What would you do if you were a nurse?

Literature distributed at this point reinforces the ideas covered in classroom discussion and prepares the student for academic progression. Students are provided with a recommended curriculum with emphasis placed on excelling at biology, chemistry, psychology, sociology, and communications. Students are encouraged to meet with academic advisers to plan a course progression.

Finally, students are asked to start volunteering their time at community-based organizations, preferably in health care or human services. Students can help organize events for nursing home residents, or simply visit and talk with the elderly. Students can get involved in community clean-up efforts for elderly residents, or work at a food kitchen or large-scale shelter. Students are also encouraged to think of their own volunteer ideas, and ways to reach out to others.

The second level, CNA, is aimed at high school students. Many vocational high schools offer CNA certification to students and students are encouraged to complete this program as early as possible and apply for aide jobs in their community. Working part-time as a CNA provides income, hands-on experience, and exposure to higher levels of health care. Students develop ease and comfort interacting with patients and families; and familiarity with charting, obtaining vital statistics, and performing patient care.

It is important at this level to emphasize the quality of their work as an aide. Aides perform the core cares of registered nurses. All the knowledge and skills required of higher-level nursing procedures are worthless if the nurse cannot or will not attend to the basic human needs of toileting, feeding, positioning, and cleaning while maintaining humanity and dignity. As a CNA, students have completed the first step towards their nursing education.

Literature at this point is strongly oriented towards applying for college, and ensuring that academic requirements are met. The daunting task of paying for college is addressed, outlining federal, state and local sources of loans, scholarships, and grants. Students are encouraged to attend information sessions at universities and colleges. This is the time to emphasize that college is the next critical step towards achieving their goals, that this step must not be missed, and that they are ready for the challenge.

The last step, Student Nurse-Mentor, is geared towards students who have started their college degree. Either alone or through collaborative efforts with local chapters of student groups, college students inspire middle school students to take steps towards college and nursing. Interventions can be as simple as one-on-one academic mentoring with a local student or groups, or as complex as initiating the step-wise program outlined in this essay.

The initial implementation of this program faces some logistical complexities such as finding suitable community sites for volunteers, coordinating with advisers within school systems, and ensuring that CNA certification programs are available. Disseminating educational literature will be difficult unless core materials are developed through an organization such as the National Student Nurses’ Association or the American Nurses Association. However, there cannot be any question that radical steps are needed to improve nursing diversity. Through outreach and community programs, outlined here, we can cultivate a new generation of diverse and highly prepared nurses in the years to come.

Martha Phillips