Infographics
Nurses: Trusted Messengers in the Public Health Response
Published on: March 05, 2021.
About the Data Insights
Staffing and equipment shortages, mental health challenges and burnout are a few of the key challenges facing nurses during the pandemic. This infographic explores strategies to strengthen the nursing workforce, including supporting their role as trusted messengers during the pandemic response.
Largest share of health care workforce: Nursing Fact Sheet, American Association of Colleges of Nursing
3.8 million nurses: Nursing Fact Sheet, American Association of Colleges of Nursing
Gender & Racial/Ethnic breakdown: Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Note: breakdown includes 3.3 million registered nurses as counted by the Current Population Survey
Trust: Honesty and Ethics 2020 poll, Gallup
Projected shortage: Nursing Shortage, American Association of Colleges of Nursing
2018 survey on leaving nursing workforce: Shah MK, Gandrakota N, Cimiotti JP, Ghose N, Moore M, Ali MK. Prevalence of and Factors Associated With Nurse Burnout in the US. JAMA Network Open. 2021
- Note: data collected from supplemental material
PPE Shortages & Staffing Challenges:
March & April Survey: Survey: Nurses Fear Going to Work Due to Lack of Protection from Virus More than 32k Nurses Share Experience from the Front Lines, American Nurses Association
May & August Survey: Update on Nurses and PPE: Survey reveals alarming conditions, American Nurses Association
Shortages & Traveling Nurses: Need a COVID-19 Nurse? That’ll Be $8,000 a Week, Kaiser Health News
Survey, Positive Progress: The Impact of COVID-19 on the Nursing Profession in the U.S., American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL)
Burnout: A Pandemic’s Toll on Nurses, NurseGrid in collaboration with the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN)
- Note: 22% statistic calculated by summing percent of nurses that said they will either leave bedside care (18.0%) or completely change their career (4.1%). This does not include nurses that will retire early or already planned to retire.
Mental Health: The Mental Health of Healthcare Workers in COVID-19, Mental Health America
Physical Health, COVID Numbers: Lost on the frontline, An Investigation by Kaiser Health News & The Guardian; data collected 3/4/2021
Immediate Strategies:
Increase access to personal protective equipment: Keep Yourself and Your Family Safe, American Nurses Association
- Provide education on COVID-19 preparedness
Considerations for COVID-19 Preparedness and Response in U.S. Schools of Nursing, American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)
Recommendations for Improving National Nurse Preparedness for Pandemic Response: Early Lessons from COVID-19, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Health Security
Support immediate mental health needs: Mental Health Help for Nurses, American Nurses Association
Address vaccine hesitancy in health care workers: “It’s essential to understand why some health care workers are putting off vaccination,” Vox
Long-term Strategies:
- Burnout:
“Top Tips From Nurses on Dealing With Burnout,” Nurse Journal
“The looming health-care crisis: A shortage of health workers would be disastrous,” The Conversation
Note: The World Health Organization recognizes burnout as a syndrome that is a measure of chronic distress associated with one's job.
Competency: AONL Nurse Leader Competencies, American Organization for Nursing Leadership
Workforce: Enhancing Diversity in the Workforce, American Association of Colleges of Nursing
Culturally Competent Care: Enhancing Diversity in the Workforce, American Association of Colleges of Nursing
Leadership: “Insights from Nursing: Through the COVID-19 Lens,” Presentation by Mary Ann Fuchs, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN during a NIHCM webinar titled, Nurses on the Frontline: Strengthening America’s Health Care Workforce
Media: “Why Nurses’ Voices Matter,” Presentation by Diana Mason, PhD, RN, FAAN during a NIHCM webinar titled, Nurses on the Frontline: Strengthening America’s Health Care Workforce
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