Although the demand for training has increased, 70 per cent of nurses leave Ireland within two years of qualifying, writes Fiona Tyrrell.
A degree in nursing is seen as a "passport to travel" by students, according to Irish Nurses' Organisation (INO) general secretary Liam Doran. He says the increased demand for nursing places has been prompted in part by the higher profile afforded to the profession by the new nursing degree courses and inclusion in the CAO system.
The demand for the new courses, established in 2002, continues to rise, and the points required (between 360 and 400) are greater than that for an arts degree.
More nurses are being trained in Ireland than ever before, with a 90 per cent increase in the number of trainees in the past five years. Last September, 1,740 started their nursing degree, compared with 900 in 1998.
Despite this, the Irish health system is suffering from a serious shortage of nurses. The INO said last month that the number of vacant nursing positions within the health service is set to rise to over 2,200 within the next 18 months.
It is estimated that 70 per cent of nurses leave the system within two years of qualifying and the health service is becoming increasingly reliant on foreign nurses. There are currently over 4,000 non-EU nurses working in Ireland.
The training for Irish nurses has been radically transformed in recent years. It changed from a certificate to a diploma in the 1990s. Since 2002, standard applicants attain direct entry to the new degree course through the CAO, based on points achieved in the Leaving Certificate.
Places are also available to mature students and through FETAC courses.
There are three branches to the profession: mental handicap nursing, psychiatric nursing and general nursing. The courses take place in 13 colleges, where there are over 1,600 places available in nursing.
"The degree programme was the only way for nursing to go. We simply were not going to get the attention of school leavers without the degree," Horan says.
The degree programme means Irish nurses now have a qualification that is recognised worldwide. The big question is how to hold on to them, says Horan. Any changes in nursing in this country must be looked at on a worldwide level, where there is a shortage of nurses, he says.
"Nurses can travel freely around the world and it is seen as a passport to travel. Irish nurses can travel to any developed country in the world, such as the Middle East, Australia, the UK or the US, and get work. Simply arrive in the country and get work the following morning. We now have to go even further afield to get the level of nurses required in this country," he says.
The attraction with working overseas is not just financial, although nurses in the US, Australia and Middle East earn much more than their Irish counterparts.
Louise May, in her third year of her degree at DCU, plans to travel when she completes her course. "Like all newly trained nurses in Ireland, I will probably travel for a year or two. Unfortunately, in this country, nurses feel a little hard done by and under-appreciated, whereas countries such as Australia or the Arab Emirates pay well for the job," she says.
May, who says nursing is a "hard way of life", sees the option of travel as one of the pay-offs for her career choice.
There is a long tradition of nurses travelling abroad for work, according to Sheelagh Wickham, assistant director of the School of Nursing, Dublin City University.
"Nursing has always been a passport to travel. Even in my time, there was always a fair percentage of nurses who worked away. Most return to Ireland and bring a wealth of information and knowledge back."
The changing face of training is a reflection of the radical changes in the general healthcare system, she says.
"When I trained in the late 1970s, a coronary bypass was a big operation.
"Although it is still a big operation, it is so much more commonplace. Healthcare has changed so much and nursing had to change to keep up with this.
"People no longer just take what they are given, and they do and should ask questions about the care they are getting. Nurses need to be able to answer these questions, to ask other questions themselves."
The increased demand for nursing places is in no small way related to the changeover to the degree course, she says.
It is seen as a much more "obvious professional qualification", and people are increasingly aware of what nursing offers as a career, she explains.
Having a degree also affords graduates many more options later in life. They can progress into education, management or change over to other sectors more easily, she says.