RNs held an Associate's degree, 37 percent held a. Bachelor's degree, 15 percent held a certificate or diploma, and 3 pe
Office of Rural Health and Primary Care P.O. Box 64882 St. Paul, MN 55164-0882 651-201-3838
Minnesota’s Registered Nurse Workforce 2009-2010 The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), in cooperation with the Minnesota Board of Nursing, collects information on education, career and future plans of registered nurses (RNs). Minnesota RNs complete workforce surveys during the biennial licensing renewal process. Unless noted, all data presented are based on information collected from RNs (including advanced practice registered nurses) renewing licenses from 2009 to 2010. The survey response rate was 58 percent. Overall As of January 2011, there were 86,179 RNs licensed in Minnesota. Of these, an estimated 74,839 worked in Minnesota.
Training and Education At the time of initial licensure, 75 percent of Minnesota RNs received nursing preparation at an academic institution in Minnesota.
Sex, Race and Ethnicity Licensed RNs were predominately female (93 percent). The percentage of the RN workforce that was male rose from 7.1 percent in 2007-2008 to 7.5 percent in 2009-2010, a 6 percent increase.
When initially licensed, 44 percent of Minnesota RNs held an Associate’s degree, 37 percent held a Bachelor’s degree, 15 percent held a certificate or diploma, and 3 percent held a Master’s degree or higher. Among RNs who responded to the survey question about additional education, 21 percent said they went on to earn an additional nursing degree after first becoming licensed as an RN, raising the proportion of Minnesota RNs with a Bachelor’s degree to 40 percent, and RNs with a Master’s degree or higher to 10 percent.
Most RNs identified their race as White (94 percent). Only 6 percent of RNs identified themselves as African American, Native American, Asian or multiracial. One percent identified their ethnicity as Hispanic. Age Range The median age of RNs in Minnesota was 48, a small increase from 47 reported in 2007-2008. The number of RNs who were 65 and older increased by 56 percent (Graph A).
Geographic Distribution For every RN located in a rural area, at least three RNs were located in an urban area of the state (based on mailing addresses) (Graph B). Graph B Distribution of Registered Nurses by Rural-Urban Commuting Areas, Minnesota 2009-2010
Graph A Registered Nurses by Age Group Minnesota 2007-2008 and 2009-2010 31%
6%
25% 26% 22% 20%
21%
21%
20%
7%
Urban Large Rural
12%
Small Rural
8%
6%
75% 2007-2008
Under age 35
ages 35-44
2009-2010
ages 45-54
ages 55-64
Age 65 and older
Isolated Rural
Minnesota’s Registered Nurse Work Force 2009-2010 – Page 2 Work Status and Future Plans Eighty-eight percent of the respondents worked in a paid or volunteer position. Only 4 percent said they were employed in a job other than nursing, while 3 percent said they were unemployed. The remaining licensed RNs were retired (3 percent), on family or medical leave (2 percent), or students (1 percent). Graph C Registered Nurses Future Plans to Practice Minnesota 2009-2010
Graph D Registered Nurses by Primary Work Setting Minnesota 2009-2010 1% 3% 3%
8%
8% 8%
57% 12%
94%
85%
77%
76%
Hospital (n=20,506)
75%
Clinic/Provider Office (n=4,316) Long Term Care Facility (n=2,792) Home Health/Public Health (n=2,945) School, College, University (n=1,323) Insurance Co; Rehab facility (n=1,130) Independent Practice; Urgent Care (n=291) Other, Unspecified (n=2,890)
n=36,193
23%
25%
24% 15%
6% 34 years and younger
35 to 44 years
45 to 54 years
10 years or less
55 to 64 years
65 years and older
Hospital employment ranked highest for RNs in both urban (59 percent) and rural areas (50 percent). Clinic/provider offices were the second-most frequent work setting for RNs in urban areas (13 percent), while long-term care facilities were second among RNs in rural areas (13 percent) (figure not shown).
more than 10 years
Among RNs who had future plans to stay in the workforce, 60 percent said they plan to stay more than 10 years. Twenty-three percent of RNs younger than 35 years of age planned to stop practicing in 10 years or less (Graph C). Regardless of age, among the 20 percent who planned to leave the RN workforce in five years or less, the reasons were as follows: retirement (69 percent), moving to another state (15 percent), changing jobs (6 percent), and other unspecified reasons (10 percent).
Most RNs reported spending some portion of their work providing patient care (59 percent). Supervising patient care was the next most frequently reported activity (24 percent), followed by teaching/research (13 percent). On average, 77 percent of an RN’s time was spent providing patient care.
Primary Work Settings and Activities RNs reported working an average of 34 hours a week. Hospitals were the most frequent place of employment for RNs (57 percent) (Graph D).
For more information, contact: Office of Rural Health and Primary Care Health Workforce Analysis Program 651-201-3838 TTY: 651-201-5797 www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/workforce
August 2012
