National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice Report to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on the Basic Registered Nurse Workforce.

The National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP) initiated an examination of basic registered nurse workforce issues in December 1994. NACNEP took into account the environment in which registered nurses (RNs) would practice, the appropriate educational qualifications needed, and the status of the registered nurse population in relation to future needs. NACNEP then identified the steps the federal government should take to ensure the availability of an appropriately qualified RN workforce to serve the future health care needs of the population. This report presents their findings and recommendations. Following a list of NACNEP members and an executive summary, the report's contents are: (1) background (introduction, roles for nurses in the future, implications for nursing education, implications for the registered nurse workforce, conclusion); and (2) policy issues, proposed goals, and options (restructure basic RN workforce, ensure an adequate supply of RNs, prepare existing RN workforce, enhance ability of RN workforce to meet challenges of cultural diversity, examine effect of functions of RNs in provision of quality health care to population). The report includes numerous figures and tables. Appendices include the charter of NACNEP and data on the future supply of and requirements for registered nurses. (EV)