Survey says minority nursing bias hampers advancement

Some nursing leaders say discrimination can hamper minority recruitment.

By Damon Adams, amednews staff. March 11, 2002.

A new survey about minority nurses shows that many of these nurses believe there are personal and professional barriers to their progress and that they have been denied promotions because of race.

African-American nurses were more likely than other respondents to say they were denied promotions for jobs for which they were qualified.

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Such problems make it harder to attract minorities to nursing, according to some minority nursing leaders.

"It's a reality that there are a lot of barriers for promotion and retention for Hispanic nurses," said Nilda Peragallo, DrPH, RN, president-elect of the National Assn. of Hispanic Nurses. "Your capabilities are many times questioned because you are different. That turns many nurses away."

In February, the American Nurses Assn. released "Minority Nurses in the New Century: Characteristics and Workforce Utilization Patterns -- A Survey." It is based on responses from 5,284 nurses who are African-American, white, Hispanic, Asian-American/Pacific Islander and American Indian/Alaskan Native. About half of the sample was African-American while one-third was white. By design, racial and ethnic minority nurses were oversampled.

Respondents to the survey, sponsored by the American Nurses Foundation and conducted in 2000, answered questions covering areas such as work experience, job promotion and satisfaction, and certification.

12% of registered nurses have minority backgrounds.

Most nurses were certified, covering areas such as community health, home health and psychiatric/mental health. A majority received basic nursing education in the United States. Nearly two out of three worked in urban settings.

A large percentage of minority nurses said care is below average for minority patients more than for other patients. "Caucasian nurses do not share this perception," said lead survey author Hattie Bessent, EdD, RN.

Six in 10 of those surveyed were more satisfied than dissatisfied with the match of their job responsibilities with their level of education and experience. But there are problems when it comes to advancement.

About half believed there are barriers to their progress, including educational, institutional, personal and professional barriers. African-American nurses were more likely to mention institutional barriers while Asian-Americans/Pacific Islanders pointed to personal obstacles.

A majority of African-Americans, Hispanics and Asian-Americans/Pacific Islanders attributed denial of promotion to their race rather than to experience or education.

To address these issues, the leading minority nursing associations joined forces and created the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Assns., said Kem Louie, PhD, RN, president of the Asian-American/Pacific Islander Nurses Assn.

Minority leaders say work force disparities make it harder to hire and keep minority nurses. "There hasn't been a great effort to go into minority communities to recruit them as nurses," said Dr. Louie, associate professor in the Nursing Dept. at William Paterson University in New Jersey. "There are so many strengths that minority persons can bring to nursing."

Meanwhile, another new survey -- the 2000 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses -- found that fewer young people are choosing careers in nursing. That survey found that 12.3% of registered nurses are from one or more racial or ethnic minority backgrounds.

When U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson released the survey in February, he launched a campaign to encourage children to consider careers in nursing and the health professions. Information kits on 270 health careers are being made available to parents, teachers and other groups.

"We have a severe nursing shortage in this country, and it's absolutely critical that we encourage more of our nation's students to choose careers in nursing," Thompson said.

Note "Minority Nurses in the New Century" is available for $29.95 through American Nurses Publishing, a program of the American Nurses Assn. Call (800) 637-0323 or order online (http://www.nursingworld.org/pressrel/2002/pr0222.htm).