LEWISTON – Maine is not alone when it comes to having a shortage of nurses, and the shortfall is not expected to decrease any time in the foreseeable future.

State Labor Department figures show nearly 1,100 annual nursing vacancies statewide, and the shortfall is expected to grow to more than 5,200 by 2020.

A survey of 15,000 Maine nurses who were asked why they no longer practice showed a majority of them left due to retirement. A separate study in 2002 showed Maine had more licensed nurses working in non-nursing jobs than any other New England state, said Patricia Philbrook, leader of the Maine State Nurses Association.

But some nurses who’ve left say they’re not willing put up with the heavy workload at many Maine hospitals, fearing the long hours could compromise their patients’ health and safety.

Joanne Donnellan quit after working eight years at one of Maine’s largest hospitals. Donnellan said that for years, she dreamt of patients being left untended and rounds unfinished. The bad dreams went away after she got out of health care altogether.

Deb Kerr of Lovell, who worked as a home care nurse until earlier this year, said patients demanded more care than she could offer during her scheduled hours, and when Kerr complained to her bosses, they played down the problem.

“I just felt I couldn’t do the job I had been hired for,” Kerr said. “I felt I was put in a precarious situation.” Kerr said she’s now working in a nursing home, but is ready to leave the nursing field altogether.

A bill before the Maine Legislature attempts to address the nursing shortage. It seeks $1.7 million more for nursing programs across the state in an effort to increase nursing student slots. About half of the states have pending legislation that prescribes nurse-to-patient ratios, but Maine is not among them.