Editor's Note Healthcare employment in the US rose in December to a seasonally adjusted 16,005,200 workers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on January 8. That’s 31,000 more workers than in November and the largest monthly increase since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The overall unemployment rate is 6.7%.

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Editor's Note Employment in US hospitals was up 4,700 jobs in November to a seasonally adjusted 5,160,800, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on December 4. That’s down 76,000 employees than a year ago. Overall, healthcare employment is at 15,979,800, which has decreased 439,400 in the past year. The overall…

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Editor's Note In response to an increase in hospitalized COVID-19 patients, 66 hospitals have postponed or cancelled elective surgical procedures in an effort to free up space and ensure enough staff and PPE are available, the November 24 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. All of the hospitals are in the Midwest…

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Editor's Note In a November 23 letter to federal government leaders, the American College of Surgeons (ACS), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), and Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) asked officials “to act collectively and quickly in support of hospitals and healthcare providers as they continue to struggle in response…

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Editor's Note Demand for temporary nursing staff is on the rise as COVID-19 cases surge across the country, the November 13 Healthcare Dive reports. Surge capacity plans include the following: Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare is hiring 200 traveling nurses. The 24-hospital system also brought on 31 nurses from New York-Presbyterian, a…

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Editor's Note A new nationwide survey by National Nurses United of more than 15,000 RNs finds that hospitals are failing to prepare for a surge of COVID-19 during flu season. Among the nurses’ complaints: inappropriate pursuit of profits resulting in lack of proper infection control measures ongoing issues of both…

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Release of the National Academy of Medicine’s (NAM) report, Future of Nursing 2020-2030, has been delayed until spring 2021. The report is expected to address “newly emerging evidence related to the COVID-19 global pandemic and include recommendations regarding the role of nurses in responding to the crisis,” according to the…

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Most respondents to a July 2020 American Organization for Nursing Leadership survey said they felt prepared for a future surge of COVID-19. That future is now, with nearly 150,000 new cases being reported daily across the country and multiple hospitals at capacity. Survey respondents said their biggest challenges early in…

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For the first time in its history, the annual OR Manager Conference was held virtually September 30 to October 2. Many things were different this year, but the robust educational content and advanced technology were the same as in previous years. In a post-conference survey, more than 60% of respondents…

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Half a million experienced nurses are expected to retire by 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This translates into the need for 1.1 million new nurses to replace those who are retiring and to accommodate an expansion in the delivery of healthcare services. An OR nurse with solid…

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