Editor's Note This study led by nurse researcher Peter I. Buerhaus, PhD, RN, FAAN, at Montana State University, Bozeman, finds a tightening of the labor market for RNs, LPNs, and nursing assistants (NAs), marked by falling employment and rising wages from February 2020 through June 2021. The researchers found unprecedented…

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Editor's Note Maryland Gov Larry Hogan on January 4, 2022, signed an executive order authorizing the secretary of the Maryland Department of Health to regulate hospital personnel, bed space, and supplies. A second order authorizes additional steps to further increase the state’s emergency medical services workforce, the January 5 Becker’s…

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Editor's Note Medscape’s 2021 Nurse Career Satisfaction Report, published December 29, 2021, found that the COVID-19 pandemic was responsible for the burnout of 20% of respondents, according to the January 3, 2022, Becker’s Hosptial Review. The survey of 10,788 nurses in various positions (ie, RNs, LPNs, APRNs) found the following:…

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Editor's Note Illinois Gov J. B. Pritzker and the Illinois Health and Hospital Association have asked hospitals to delay nonurgent surgical procedures in preparation for a “likely” post-holiday Omicron surge and shortage of staffed ICU beds, the January 3 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. The state is seeing about 500 new…

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After more than a year in hiatus, OR Manager Conference was held in October 2021 in Chicago, bringing together hundreds of attendees, speakers, and exhibitors. After the live conference, OR Manager sat down with Cindy Kildgore, education coordinator for the OR Manager Conference; Amy Bethel, education coordinator for the OR…

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Editor's Note A new KLAS Research report finds that COVID-19 has surpassed electronic health records (EHRs) as a primary source of clinician burnout, the December 7 EHR Intelligence reports. The report also finds that nurses have different sources of burnout than physicians since the start of the pandemic: After-hours workloads…

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Editor's Note Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, on December 9, declared the state’s nursing shortage amid the COVID-19 pandemic a State of Emergency. The executive order noted that Kentucky is operating 12% to 20% short of the needed nursing volume, and the state is projected to need more than 16,000 additional…

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Editor's Note A new nationwide survey of nurses by Florida Atlantic University’s Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Boca Raton, conducted in partnership with Cross Country Healthcare, Inc, finds that the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced long-lasting negative perceptions of their future careers. Of 570 respondents: 37% said they were burned…

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Editor's Note A Louisiana federal judge, on November 30, blocked the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers (HCWs) at facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid nationwide, the November 30 Axios reports. In his ruling, the judge says the executive branch does not have the authority to bypass Congress in enforcing…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers from Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, finds that healthcare workers (HCWs) had significant changes in their personal and professional lives during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, before the availability of vaccines. Findings from this analysis of 1,344 HCWs (ie, nurses,…

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