DECATUR - Everybody knows a nurse. From butterfly-bandaging playground badges of honor to caring for the critically ill and dying, they see us at some of life's most joyful and painful moments.

This May, National Nurses' Month, a salute to the profession is in order. A few longtime nurses offered their impressions on where the field is headed, despite an uncertain economic climate and a national nursing shortage that is anticipated to worsen.

"We are keeping up right now with our need," said Decatur Memorial Hospital Chief Nurse Executive Linda Fahey.

The hospital currently employs 500 registered nurses and makes up for a 10 percent yearly turnover rate by hiring 40 to 50 new registered nurses annually. This is due in part to retirement and an aging nursing work force, Fahey said.

According to Illinois Center for Nursing statistics, she explained, the average age of registered nurses is 42. The average age of nurses in our region is 46 or older, she said.

In the '80s and '90s, fewer people were entering the field, contributing in part to the now dwindling numbers, she said.

Fahey said that in 2020, it is estimated that Illinois will be short by nearly 32,000 registered nurses, citing a Health Resources and Services Administration federal report on work force shortages.

Health care institutions have worked to increase their nursing work forces over the past several years, but the shortage will remain a long-term issue, hospital administrators said.

"Part of (the problem) is we're not bringing in as many young nurses due to many reasons," said Theresa Rutherford, chief operating officer at St. Mary's Hospital.

The aging work force, combined with an aging general population, could leave the nursing work force woefully unprepared to deal with the issues of baby boomers, administrators said.

That factor is exacerbated by a lack of master's- and doctoral-level nurse educators to teach those entering the field, Rutherford said.

"A lot of our nurses aren't advanced trained in that way, and if they are, they're so highly regarded in the hospitals, they tend to stay in the clinical field versus education," she said.

Working in academia takes work and takes up time that could be spent caring for patients, Rutherford said, adding that many nurses prefer a clinical environment to a classroom setting.

With about 500 nurses on staff, St. Mary's continues to stay ahead of any possible shortage, she said. Last quarter alone, the hospital added another 15 nurses to its staff and continues to have openings because of retirement and facility growth.

"I think, realistically, we have to stay involved," Rutherford said. "We're working real hard with all of the schools."

Local health care institutions will continue to work closely with community agencies and educational institutions such as Richland Community College and Millikin University, which have nursing programs, to attract and cultivate quality nursing students and educators.

"Many of our registered nurses have graduated from one of those two programs," Fahey said.

Deborah Slayton, director of the Millikin University School of Nursing, said that of the 14 faculty members, 60 percent have earned doctorates, and the rest possess master's degrees.

The average age of the nursing faculty is 53, she said, adding that she anticipates losing some of them to retirement over the next 15 years.

"One of the problems is nursing salaries are so good in the institutions that it's hard, especially for private colleges, to compete with those salaries," Slayton said.

Student enrollment in the nursing program at Millikin has remained stable, with a total of 257 students across all levels this past fall.

"I think that students who are going into the nursing program are very diverse," Slayton said, adding that she sees a range of ages, ethnic backgrounds and experiences in her students. Some are people who've made their original careers in other things but found themselves drawn to the profession later in life.

Slayton, Rutherford and Fahey encouraged those who have a strong sense of ethics, compassion, critical thinking skills and a background in the sciences to consider nursing as a career.

"You have to have the desire to care, and it's a service profession, so it really takes that special person," Fahey said.

Over the years, nursing as a whole has become a more specialized field with a multitude of practice areas from schools to home health, Rutherford said, adding that she believes that flexibility is what will save it in the future.

Fahey, who started her career as a registered nurse in 1975, said she wanted to be a nurse at a very early age. Fahey has worked in a variety of clinical practice areas, including a stint as a Navy nurse.

"My grandmother always said it was a calling," she said. "I've never had a job in nursing that I haven't loved."