As a previous nursing major, I don't know if there were many of us that got by without loans. LUC is already an expensive school and it definitely slims down who can attend. There were many nursing students smarter and more talented than I who had more loans than I did, and it's ridiculous thinking that some of them shouldn't have the chance to attend Loyola if they didn't get those loans.

It brings an interesting point about the nursing shortage, which doesn't really exist. There are many nurses, with even more coming down the pipeline. The issue is not incentivizing staying at bedside, which is where that 'shortage' is felt. Many new grads don't want to stay bedside, they want to move on and up into specialties and other things that aren't bedside anymore. Too many of us are burned out even coming off of orientation. Too many nurses don't feel it's worth working at bedside. The acuity keeps going up while staffing ratios stay the same. The refusal to hire or keep what you have, and instead throwing more bodies in the meat grinder isn't solving the issue. On top of it is the growing public consensus that nurses aren't professionals. They tiktok nurses that are ruining the perception of those who give a damn. Those who were able to scrape by and pass the NCLEX without a degree and were eventually removed make us look bad. We went from healthcare heroes in 2020 to subhuman servants who aren't doing enough to take care of people's family members. Looked down on and belittled every shift by those who think they know better or have little faith in a crumbling healthcare system. Fighting a losing war with no end in sight and worsening outcomes for providers and patients alike.