Condition of the nursing staff

The nation’s 4.3 million registered nurses work in all elements of health care and play a critical role in delivering care, advancing health systems locally and nationally, closing health disparities and improving the health of the nation. Harnessing the complete power and promise of nurses and the nursing occupation will depend on addressing complex issues resembling:

• Building an adequate supply of nurses;
• Creating a secure, empowering and healthy work environment;
• Public policies that support high-quality health care;
• Laws and regulations enabling nurses to practice their occupation to the complete extent of their education and qualifications.

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, nurse shortages were intermittent attributable to aspects resembling the economic downturn, waves of nurse retirements and increased demand for healthcare.

When the pandemic broke out in March 2020, nurses, who constitute the most important group of healthcare staff within the country, were already under pressure attributable to aspects resembling:

• People retiring outnumber recent entrants to the sector;
• Increased demand for health care from aging populations and people with chronic diseases;
• Insufficient workforce support

Demand for RNs has increased through the pandemic. This, combined with other existing aspects, significantly exacerbates the nursing shortage and exposes the challenges nurses face within the workplace. Nurses live under enormous stress and bear the brunt of an overburdened, poorly functioning healthcare system.

About nurses’ supplies

— The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that registered nurses will employ a mean of 194,500 staff annually between 2020 and 2030, with employment growing 9%.

—According to the 2020 National Council of State Boards of Nursing and the 2020 National Forum of State Nursing Work Centers, the common age of nurses was 52, with greater than one-fifth expressing intentions to retire inside the following 5 years. study of the nursing workforce within the USA. The pandemic has accelerated this trend.

More on nurse and workforce shortages

These organizations offer resources, data, and statistics regarding RN numbers, RN licensure, employment, and nursing school enrollment:

Future

To address the continued pandemic and changing patient demographics and their demands on the health care system, more nurses are needed in practice areas resembling telehealth, home health, long-term care and rehabilitation, and ambulatory care centers.

ANA closely monitors, analyzes and acts in accordance with federal laws, policy and rulemaking regarding the nursing workforce, work environment, shortages and practice authorities. We work with our state and state nurse associations on the impact of federal actions on state and native jurisdictions. In turn, C/SNAs closely monitor activities of their states and communities and report back to the ANA on these developments, so together we gain a world picture of policy and regulatory trends that impact the nursing occupation. Learn more about ANA’s advocacy efforts.