Retirement options for nurses - Research Paper Example

The nurses enjoy their career, and they love their respectable profession, but most of them look forward to hanging up their scrubs - they opt to retire earlier than usual due to the nature of their job. In most cases, they retire without any retirement plan, and as per the report of the Center for American Nurses, not more than 40 percent of the registered nurses have any retirement plan like 401 (k) offered by the employer or any other long term saving or investment plans (Blakeley & Ribeiro, 2008).

It suggests that most of them retire without any financial security. The objective of this paper is to discuss the retirement options for nurses. Retirement Options Generally, nurses don’t look forward to the retirement options as much as their male counterparts from other professions, and the prime reason for this tendency is that nurses are females who hardly take any initiatives for investments. The second reason is that they have scientific background and have no interest for financial management since they are overworked and get so tired that they procrastinate any decision of financial planning or retirement management (Goldberg, 2002).

Like other professionals, nurses should also plan their financial security and retirement just from the beginning of their career. They can take the services of financial consultants or retirement consultants for their planning. There are many options available for them. These options have both financial and social aspects and are necessary since they provide them physical or health protection in old age (Glasper, 2011). Financial aspects There are various options available for the nurses which can provide them financial security after retirement. a. Personal savings – They must save 10 to 20 percent of their monthly emoluments for their future b.

Recurring Deposits – Recurring deposit of even a small amount becomes a huge sum after a long time, and it helps in old age. c. Pension Plans – Many financial companies offer pension plans which can be availed by the nurses: depositing a small amount per month, they will get a corresponding return per month after they retire (Ho, 2006) d. 401 (k) - Nurses can avail retirement through employer 401 (k) programs e. Besides above mentioned plans, there are many others which can benefit them after retirement; such plans include Govt savings, such as RRSP, IRS, Roth IRA, simple IRA, etc.

(Goldberg, 2002) Social aspects Nurses must not forget about the social aspects of their retirement plans. Since they have been committed to their profession, they might have not fulfilled their social commitments properly, and after retirements the society would have more expectations from them (Friis et al., 2007). a. Friends and family – Due to overwork and commitment to their nurses might not have given adequate time to their families and friends, and after retirement their expectations would be high - the nurses can meet them if they have planned their retirement properly (Friedrich et al., 2011) b. Community involvement through volunteering – They also need to plan their retirement adequately if they wish to be involved in community programs through volunteering (Dziadekwich, Andrushko & Klassen, 2012). c. Personal pursuits such as travel, continued education, etc.

– Many nurses wish to continue their education after retirement, or go on a long vacation or tour, or prefer to visit places. These personal pursuits can only be achieved if their retirement is properly