22 | CFHN
centralfloridahealthnews.com
1330 Havendale Blvd. ✥ Winter Haven, FL 33881
Karl Duce
President, AAI
Offi  ce: (863) 293-2838
Fax: (863) 299-6723
Cell: (863) 412-8229
Email: [email protected]
www.ebdins.com
I 
t seems like we’ve been saying it for years: Florida is in the midst of a 
nursing crunch, and we’ve been speeding toward a severe shortage. 
Between an aging population, an aging workforce, and rapid popula-
tion growth, the state has been facing a perfect storm for a nursing cri-
sis. But now there’s good news: The tide may finally be starting to turn.
According to a Florida Hospital Association report released earlier 
this year, significant progress has been made in the fight to shore 
up the nursing workforce. 
Back in 2021, the Association projected that Florida would face a 
shortage of roughly 59,000 nurses by 2035 if no action was tak-
en. Fortunately, action has been taken, and the numbers are start-
ing to reflect that. Since 2022, registered nurse vacancy rates have 
dropped by 52 percent and turnover rates are down by 47 percent.
In January, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced continued support for 
nursing education, awarding more than $485 million through the 
Linking Industry to Nursing Education (LINE) and the Prepping Insti-
tutions, Programs, Employers, and Learners through Incentives for 
Nursing Education (PIPELINE) programs. 
Those investments, paired with stronger partnerships between hos-
pitals and high schools, innovative training programs, and increased 
emphasis on recruitment, are making substantial headway in re-
building the nursing workforce of tomorrow. HN
Florida Nursing Shortage 
Shows Signs of Relief
JESSICA McDONALD, EDITOR 
[email protected]
EDITOR’S
DOSE
Word Search
Word Search
Solution for 
Solution for puzzle on page 19.
puzzle on page 19.
S
E
I
R A D N U O B
A
C T
T
I
N
F G
S O P E
E Y C
I
H T
E
K R O W E
A H
C E R H O S S A Y N
C
D A
R
E
T M
I
O A S C T
S P C L O C
N
I
T
D A
I
A
C U G R E H A O M L
O
I
N R U U
L
N
N S O S U C G P N
I
I
E
I
I
C L
I
R
D K S C O N A M S S M N N A
A A
E O
E
A E V A S E N E
T
I
S G G
T
V
S
T
V
I
D N S
I
A A
I
D
K
B O E
I
E M
I
E
A C
I
G P D M T
I
I
H
I
G O R O N
L N O A X
E M R L
L
C
C E
L
N T
A O
O N M E C O L
L A B
O
R A
T
I
O N M
P R F
I
C N S G W C
A
H E
T
E
T
X
I
M P O M N O
I
T A C
I
D E
D
I
O Y C
E
E R P U B
L
I
C H
E
A
L
T
H O S
A
N M T Y A P M A X
E
E
Y E
N O
I
N
T
T M A E
T
E R A C N
S
Y M P
T O M S

View this content as a flipbook by clicking here.