Abstract
[This is an excerpt.] The United States and the rest of the world continue to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering that nurses make up the largest segment of the U.S. healthcare workforce, they are essential to the country’s collective pandemic response. Nurses are the primary source of direct care to persons infected by COVID-19, including historically marginalized populations, and the ongoing demands placed on nurses are leading to unprecedented stress, burnout, and uncertainty about their profession. Even before the pandemic, healthcare settings were chronically understaffed and nurses were burnt out. According to a prepandemic analysis, a shortfall of more than 150,000 registered nurses was anticipated by 2020 (Zhang et al., 2018). The pandemic has exacerbated the labor shortage well beyond prior forecasts, stressing an already fragile U.S. healthcare system and potentially contributing to worse patient outcomes and wider health inequities. [To read more, click View Resource.]
