by KATHRYN SENIOR
In every country, rich or poor, the story is the same. There are not enough nurses. The developed world fills its vacancies by enticing nurses from other countries, while developing countries are unable to compete with better pay, better professional development and the lure of excitement offered elsewhere.
A World Bank report released in March describes the severity of the shortage of nurses in the Caribbean and Latin America alone. English-speaking Caribbean nations currently have 1.25 nurses for every 1000 people; 10 times fewer than countries in the European Union and the United States of America (USA). Around three in every 10 nursing positions currently remain unfilled and the report predicts that Caribbean countries will be short of 10 000 nurses to help care for their ageing population by 2025.
World Health Organization for more