“This has been four of the hardest years of my life. It’s reassuring the sacrifices were worth it knowing I’ll be able to find a job in May,” said senior Plattsburgh State nursing major, Marie Massaiero.
With unemployment at its highest levels in years, Massaiero falls in a very slim minority of recent and soon to be college graduates who will find a job soon after graduating. Massaiero is one of many nursing residents at NYU Medical Center. The field of nursing has seen a lot of growth since 2000 and still carries a high demand for newly educated, young registered nurses.
“The economy has effected me immensely on a personal level, my loans are outrageous and I even lost some money I had invested in stocks but I sleep easy at night knowing there’s such high demand for us,” said Massaiero while on a lunch break a couple blocks from NYU’s Tisch Hospital on First Avenue.
Further along is Lauren O’Donnelly, a NYU nursing graduate of 2008, who now works full time at the NYU Medical School.
“It is a little difficult to understand how badly some are suffering, only because I am comfortable and able to even save money—but I do count my blessings,” said O’Donnelly.
Despite the economy having little effect on the availability of jobs within the nursing field, it has changed their jobs quite a bit. “I do notice a lot more patients coming in with no insurance. Since I work very closely with the international health community, I work with a wide range of patients; many of which don’t have extensive health insurance,” said O’Donnelly.
Patients with little or no health insurance are putting a strain on hospitals revenue and its staff.
“Even with a job, if the healthcare system isn’t fixed and improved we may all be in trouble; doctors, nurses, practitioners. Hospitals rely on insurance payments to improve their quality of medicine and healing,” Massaiero said.
With security comes uncertainty and doubts. They may have a job but what use will their job be if their hospitals are unable to supply them with adequate equipment and technology.
“We have a new president who campaigned heavily on a new healthcare foundation and plan, I have faith that the economy won’t be able kill our nation’s health,” said O’Donnelly, optimistically.