COVID, burnout, and increased workloads driving young nurses to leave the profession

About 800,000 nurses plan to leave the workforce by 2027, according to research conducted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. That number includes 188,962 RNs younger than 40 years old. There are currently 4.5 million registered nurses.

The research, titled, Examining the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Burnout & Stress Among U.S. Nurses, looked at the effect the COVID-19 pandemic had on the nursing workforce. The research found that Approximately 100,000 registered nurses (RNs) left the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic in the past two years due to stress, burnout, and retirements.

Half of nurses reported feeling emotionally drained (50.8%), used up (56.4%), fatigued (49.7%), and burned out (45.1%) “a few times a week” or “every day.” These issues were more prominent with nurses with 10 or fewer years of experience, driving an overall 3.3% decline in the U.S. nursing workforce in the past two years.