The shortage of nurses in the United States has been well-documented in recent years. With the combination of an aging population that will need an increasing amount of care and a large percentage of nurses set to retire in the next decade, it's the new generation of nurses that will lead the profession into the future.

If twentysomething nurses Donte Flanagan, Anjli Aurora and Jennifer Tubre have anything to say about it, mentoring other nurses, getting involved in health care issues beyond the bedside and utilizing education to keep ahead of technology are key to the growth of the profession.

Photos by LEITA COWART/Special (ENLARGE)

Nurses Jennifer Tubre, Donte Flanagan and Anjli Aurora (from left) have entered the profession during the last six years.

(ENLARGE)

All three graduated from nursing programs within the last six years. Not only are they practicing nurses, they're also involved in grass-roots programs that support other health care practitioners and they are furthering their own educations.

Flanagan graduated from Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing in 2006, but his education didn't stop there. He attends graduate school four days a week to earn his degree in nurse anesthesia at Samford University's Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing in Birmingham. He returns to Atlanta for a three-day work week at the cardiovascular intensive care unit at Crawford Long Hospital.

If that wasn't enough, Flanagan and several of his fellow Emory alumni have formed a mentoring program for students and recent graduates.

"I love being a resource for people," said the 23-year-old, who also serves on the alumni board for Emory's nursing school. "I picture myself as a mentor to other nurses. Forming this group is just one way we can assure the future of nursing, and mentor students and graduates."

Tubre, who earned an associate degree in nursing from Louisiana Technical College and a bachelor of science degree from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, is a student in the master's in nursing education program at Georgia Baptist College of Nursing of Mercer University in Atlanta.

"Teaching is a passion of mine, and, with the current nursing shortage, we need more people in the profession," she said. "The challenges of nursing — from the increase in technology to the complexities of diagnosis and treatment — are all valid reasons to educate more nurses. Education is the direction that nursing needs to take."

Tubre, 26, has been a nurse for five years and works in the pediatric intensive-care unit at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite. She already has a vision of nursing in the future.

"As the population ages, we need nurses more than ever," she said. "It's easy to get burned out, so where you work and how you're supported in the workplace is essential."

Look ahead

Aurora, a nursing student at Emory University, wants to be a family nurse practitioner and a nurse midwife. She's also president of HealthSTAT, an independent, nonprofit organization founded by students at Emory and Morehouse medical schools in 2002.

"Our mission is to create a interdisciplinary cadre of future health professionals who can make a difference now in the future of health care," said Aurora, the first nurse to head the group. Earlier this year, HealthSTAT lobbied the General Assembly on behalf of increased funding for Grady Memorial Hospital. "As health care providers, we also need to get involved to assure the future of health care."

By bringing together students from all health disciplines, HealthSTAT helps break down interprofessional barriers and encourages collaboration to address pressing health issues.

"Our goal is to have active participation at every health professional school in Georgia," Aurora said. "We draw on existing resources; the schools and universities where students are educated; the expertise of community partners and our advisory board; and the creative potential of our student board of directors to develop students into powerful and passionate health leaders for the state of Georgia."

For many of nursing's new generation, the future of the profession lies beyond the bedside. While the focus is still on patient care, many new nurses see the need for visionary solutions to the challenges of health care.

"Being a nurse is so much more than the clinical side," Aurora said. "Nurses must be patient advocates but also be aware of and take action about things at the policy level. Dreams can become reality if you work at it. Why wait when you can do it now?"