Over the past few years, much of the discourse on supporting the well-being of healthcare workers has focused on nurses and front-line teams — and rightfully so, as many nurses continue to report burnout stemming from their work environment. But to ensure efforts meant to support bedside nurses live up to their full potential, hospitals and health systems should be placing an equal focus on nurse managers, leaders say. 

Houston Community College no longer offers its Associate Degree in Nursing program, according to the Texas Board of Nursing. 

Mercy Fort Smith (Ark.) Hospital has launched a new 18-bed unit, which will have a 4:1 patient to nurse ratio. The unit is specifically designed to provide close contact, hands-on training for new graduate nurses.

Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems added more than 1,000 bedside nurses as part of its centralized clinical recruitment strategy in 2023, executives said during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call on Feb. 21.

In the midst of staff shortages, health systems and healthcare groups have become more creative and focused on retention strategies.

Arizona Googled the term "nurse burnout" the most out of all states, a Betternurse.org study found.

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses launched a knowledge assessment tool, Feb. 13 to more easily find knowledge gaps and personalize new training to streamline onboarding time for ICU nurses. 

Tennessee has the most active nurse practitioners per capita of any state, while Hawaii has the fewest for the second year in a row, according to a ranking from KFF. 

Nancy Bisco, BSN, RN, has many life lessons to share after her 50-year career, most of which was spent in leadership roles.

The nursing workforce is 6% larger in 2023 than in 2019, hinting at a bounce back to pre-pandemic numbers, a study found.

The Georgia Nurses Association and the Georgia Hospital Association held the first  Workforce Violence Prevention Summit at the Georgia State Capitol on Feb. 12 to address the increase of violent jobsite incidents.

Despite being the top trusted profession in the U.S. for 22 years running, nurses are the least respected and most stressed, according to experts and national data. 

Hospitals are redesigning nursing and care team models to meet patient needs and leverage technology to better support nurses. While still in the early stages, a few health systems are seeing promising results for patient care and nurse satisfaction.

A California city piloted a nurse triage program for incoming 911 calls that has helped 581 residents and saved over $573,000, ABC affiliate CBS8 reported Feb. 15.

The nation has an average nurse vacancy rate of almost 16%, according to the 2023 NSI National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report. At Edison, N.J.-based Hackensack Meridian Health, however, that figure is 6.5%. The secret, according to one of its leaders: creating a strong culture, investing in nurse leadership development and implementing a strong employee referral program.

New York state is being sued by 4 nurses and criticized by 50 more who received their license through a Florida school that has been accused of selling degrees, the Times Union reported Feb. 14.

Arizona could have the worst nursing shortage crisis in the nation by 2025 with nearly 28,100 vacancies in roles needed to maintain normal levels of care, according to data from the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis.

Advanced practice nurses in Mississippi could see their roles expand, allowing for full scope of practice authority as soon as July if lawmakers there back the proposal. 

MaineHealth plans to demolish its century-old nursing school, the Portland-based system said Feb. 12. 

Arkansas Children's named Heather Cherry, DNP, RN, the John Boyd Family Endowed Chair in Pediatric Nursing.