Where Did All the Nurses Go?
Nurses and Nurse Practitioners Shape the Future of Healthcare
As Baby Boomers age and the need for healthcare grows, there continues to be a major nursing shortage. Compounding the problem, nursing schools across the country are struggling to expand student capacity to meet the rising demands for nursing care.
A portion of the nursing workforce is nearing retirement age, too. These trends are raising concerns especially in the behavioral healthcare marketplace. Behavioral care nurses are specially trained to understand and help treat the unique challenges of mental health, medication management and lifestyle intervention.
Behavioral health is a broad area of practice including clinicians, nurses, techs and health providers in a variety of facility types. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), it’s difficult to meet the projected demand for nursing services, including the need for more nurse faculty, mental health researchers and primary care nurse practitioners.
The unique role of nursing in behavioral health
The nation’s 4.3 million registered nurses work in every aspect of health and are crucial in delivering care to healthcare systems both locally and nationally. According to AACN, closing health disparities and improving the nation’s overall well-being are primary goals of modern nursing healthcare.
To leverage the power of the nursing profession, industry insiders and healthcare executives will continue to improve issues, such as:
- Building an adequate supply of working nurses
- Creating empowering, healthy work environments
- Public policy that supports quality health care
When COVID-19 changed the nursing landscape
Even before the pandemic started in 2019, nursing shortages occurred on and off due to economic downturns, retiring providers and the ever-increasing medical demands from an aging population.
COVID-19 did exacerbate existing nursing shortages, leading to a decrease in the workforce – but an increase in patients. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US nursing workforce decreased by more than 100,000 nurses during the epidemic, the biggest drop in 40 years.
RN employment began to recover through 2022-2023, though, and the nursing workforce is slowly recovering. NIH projects that the nursing workforce is expected to reach roughly 4.56 million in 2035, similar to pre-pandemic numbers.
Travel nurses help fill open roles
Travel nurses are RNs who work in temporary nursing roles. Rather than being hired by a single healthcare facility directly, travel nurses typically work with staffing agencies to fill temporary and in-demand positions. Travel nursing opportunities are available in just about every state.
Since travel nurses work on a non-permanent basis, they often move from one facility to another at the end of a contract. This provides a unique opportunity to work in a variety of settings over a relatively short period of time.
There are many benefits of becoming a travel nurse, including:
- Flexible schedule
- Higher hourly rate
- Explore new places
- Excellent health benefits
- Travel and meal reimbursement
Nurses and nurse practitioners with specialties in behavioral health and mental health services are much needed in healthcare today. Nurses can be skilled at building rapport with patients and de-escalating mental health situations. Behavioral health nurses can also educate patients and their families about treatment options and coordinated care.
Horizon Health Behavioral Health Services
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