Though minorities make up roughly 40% of Louisiana’s total population, only 19% of licensed registered nurses in the state are minorities, according to a new report on racial diversity in the nursing workforce released today by the Louisiana Center for Nursing.
The report also shows 16% of advanced practice registered nurses are minorities. The gender disparity in nursing in Louisiana is even wider, with the study showing 89% of those in the workforce are females.
Closing the racial and gender disparities in the state’s nursing workforce could help improve health outcomes and access, the report says.
“Evidence suggests that racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse healthcare providers are likely to practice in communities with similar populations, improving healthcare in those communities,” reads the report. “Changing the demographic composition of the nursing workforce, the largest segment of Louisiana’s healthcare workforce, has the potential to foster better interaction and communication with underserved populations, thereby improving quality of care and healthcare outcomes, which may ultimately lead to a decrease in healthcare costs.”
In the 11-parish Baton Rouge area, the racial gap in the nursing workforce is slightly smaller than the state at large. Of the 9,389 registered nurses working here, 79.6% are white, 17.5% are black, 1.3% are Asian, 1.1% are Hispanic or Latino, and 0.1% are either American Indian, Pacific Islander, or Alaska or Hawaiian Native. The gender gap here is about the same as in Louisiana at large, with 89.8% of registered nurses being female.
“Our ultimate goal is to have a nursing workforce in Louisiana that mirrors the demographic makeup of our residents,” says Cynthia Bienemy, director of the Louisiana Center for Nursing and author of the report, in a prepared statement.
The report urges stakeholders such as the Department of Health and Hospitals, Louisiana State Nurses Association, Louisiana State Board of Nursing, Louisiana Hospital Association and others, as well as community leaders and faith-based organizations, to “come together, in a committed fashion, to not only identify strategies to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce, but to also identify and provide resources that will be needed to implement and monitor the effectiveness of our efforts.”
