Exodus of American healthcare workers and what comes next

Air Force medical providers and support staff assigned to COVID Theater Hospital-1 arrive for a farewell ceremony hosted by the staff of Eisenhower Hospital, Rancho Mirage, California, Aug. 28, 2020. The airmen have been supporting COVID-19 response efforts at Eisenhower Hospital since mid-July. (U.S. Army photo by Lt. Col. Charles Calio)

(CHRON) – It goes without saying that the current global health crisis has had an astronomic impact on American healthcare workers. The internet has been inundated with articles and personal testimonies discussing burnout and the massive amount of stress healthcare workers have been under – but the issues these workers are facing aren’t altogether new. In a 2021 study of physicians, 79% of respondents reported that their “burnout” had begun even before the crisis began.

Whether from low wages, long hours, lack of salaried advancement opportunity, or a pre-existing shortage of workers putting strain on individuals – those stressors have now become amplified, contributing further to a vicious cycle. A recent survey showed that 18% of healthcare workers have quit their jobs since mid-February 2021, with an additional 12% laid off in that same time. Of those healthcare workers who stayed, 19% reported that they had considered leaving the healthcare profession altogether, and 12% considered leaving for another role in the industry.

This vicious cycle the healthcare industry faces is one that propagates into more individuals burnt out and leaving, feeding back into the worker shortage that overworks those who remain. Further, as wages stagnate, those healthcare workers who stayed behind have good reason to seek new opportunities.

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