McKinsey&Company
Caring for our caregivers
.
| • |
Half a million exits. Nurses and other healthcare workers across the US are calling on employers to deal with staffing shortages that intensify stress and heartbreak in an already demanding job. “I hear call bells in my sleep,” said one nurse at a recent gathering of hospital staff in Pennsylvania. Nearly half a million healthcare workers have left their jobs since February 2020, according to the US Department of Labor. [WSJ] |
|
|
| • |
A ‘tug of war.’ Nurses fighting the COVID-19 pandemic are often forced to choose between taking care of themselves and their patients, says one nurse practitioner and researcher. “For nurses, 2022 can often feel far grimmer than what we experienced at the start of the pandemic,” she says. On top of the physical and emotional demands of the job, low pay is an issue. Travel nursing jobs (short-term contract positions) pay significantly higher salaries than what local nurses earn, straining hospital budgets and damaging staff morale. [CNN] |
|
|
| • |
No end in sight. Demands on nurses were high even before the pandemic. Now, with the Omicron variant (and before that, Delta), some nurses no longer see a light at the end of the tunnel. Helping patients who are dying and comforting grieving families over and over exacts an immense emotional toll. Nearly a third of nurses said they are looking to leave their current position, a recent McKinsey survey finds. |
|
|
| • |
Celebrating healthcare workers. When sports teams win championships, cities throw parades. “Where is that kind of support and recognition at the community level for what our frontline heroes are doing day in and day out?” asks Gretchen Berlin, a McKinsey senior partner who is also a registered nurse. To learn more about what’s driving nurses to quit, along with what they say they need from employers, listen to our podcast.
|
|
|
| — Edited by Belinda Yu |
|
This email contains information about McKinsey’s research, insights, services, or events. By opening our emails or clicking on links, you agree to our use of cookies and web tracking technology. For more information on how we use and protect your information, please review our privacy policy.
|
|
You received this email because you subscribed to the On Point newsletter.
|
|
|
|
Copyright © 2022 | McKinsey & Company, 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10007
|
|
|
|
