There is no denying that nurses have undergone significant changes in the past several years, from pre-COVID times to the present. This has impacted the industry, with staffing shortages, caregiver burnout, and the need to adopt new hiring and retention strategies. To address these issues, it is crucial for healthcare leaders to listen to their organization’s needs and the caregivers’ voices.

Nursing leaders may be focused on the mounting nursing challenges of the day — nurse-to-patient ratios, shortages, burnout and incidents of violence against caregivers in hospitals — but the one issue that must always be center stage is patient safety. 

Labouré College of Healthcare, a private college in Milton, Mass., will shut down its nursing program this December, following a decision from the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing, Fox affiliate WFXT reported June 20.

University of Arkansas-Fort Smith will expand its nursing program thanks to a $10 million gift from the Windgate Foundation, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette reported June 26.

Nurses who are considering a career move — whether due to nursing-patient-ratios, burnout or even that they've found that bedside nursing is not bringing them the joy it once did — have options other than leaving the profession entirely. 

Nurses at Wichita, Kan.-based Ascension Via Christi St. Francis are raising safety concerns about the hospital's security measures after a man was accused of entering the hospital and raping three patients, KWCH reported June 23.

AdventHealth and Orlando Health have each invested $5 million to support a new building and tuition assistance for students at UCF College of Nursing in Orlando, Fla. 

Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis have partnered to launch a nurse-midwifery training program, which is set to begin in the fall of 2024, according to a June 22 news release.

Nurse leaders in hospitals and academia agree more nurse preceptors are needed to guide new graduates through their first year at the bedside.

West Virginia University Health System’s Center for Nursing Excellence in Morgantown announced the launch of what it is calling an "Aspiring Nurse Program," which will offer local community college students up to $25,000 in exchange for a three-year work commitment, according to a June 19 news release. 

First-year nurses continue to have the highest turnover rate among any other tenure level in the profession according to the 2023 nurse retention and staffing report, published by NSI Nursing Solutions Inc., a nurse staffing agency. 

Hospital leaders already know nurses are leaving the bedside — and countless more are turning away from the profession — for myriad reasons. But do they really understand why?

The American Nurses Association voted for four legislation and policy updates at its two-day governance meeting in Washington, D.C.

Lynne Yaggy, MSN, RN, chief nursing office at Cox Medical Center Branson (Mo.) and vice president of clinical services for Springfield, Mo.-based CoxHealth, is retiring after 42 years in the healthcare industry.

McDonald's is offering nurse excellence awards to nominated nurses in four states, The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported June 15.

Nurses have been calling for U.S. legislators to take action to address the national nurse staffing crisis for months to no avail. Almost 400 nurses traveled to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., June 15 to make sure Congress hears their message — loud and clear.  

A donation from the founder and CEO of Jersey Mike's sandwich franchise supported the launch of a new institute for nursing leadership and practice excellence at Edison, N.J.-based Hackensack Meridian Health. 

The spotlight on social determinants of health during the height of COVID-19, public outcry over the death of George Floyd, and the Black Lives Matter movement have highlighted the need to focus on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in U.S. hospitals — for employees and patients. 

An Indiana nurse is accused of injecting herself with pain medications prescribed to patients at Community Hospital Anderson, the Star Press reported June 14.

As artificial intelligence becomes more integrated into hospitals and patient care, questions arise as to when and how often nurses can override the algorithm and if disciplinary action should be given for wrong decisions, The Wall Street Journal reported June 15.