It’s something each of the nation’s 3.1 million RNs understands intimately: Being a nurse is intense. The hospitals and clinics where they work are often stressful. And patient care and healthcare systems have never been more complex.
Nationally, nurse turnover stands at 20 percent, but nearly 40 percent of nurses are ready to leave their job after a single year. About 14 percent leave the field altogether, and the ‘working wounded’ that remain are at best demoralized and at worst error-prone. And dealing with RN turnover is among the biggest, costliest burdens in healthcare today.
It’s why University of Virginia School of Nursing’s Compassionate Care Initiative has sponsored a new Public Radio documentary series – Resilient Nurses, now available online – which will be heard on many public radio stations starting this month and also on Sunday Feb. 22 on the NPR Channel (#122) of SiriusXM satellite radio at 4pm ET / 1pm PT.
Hosted by award-winning documentary producer David Freudberg of Humankind, the program takes a no-holds-barred look at what ails American RNs: the stress, the exhaustion, and the pressured environments that often lead to their burnout.
But beyond sourcing RNs’ biggest challenges, Freudberg offers a promising glimpse into the growing number of nurses hoping to improve their lot by harnessing well-being through resilience. Freudberg also chronicles the growing movement of resilience at a handful of American clinics and hospitals where administrators realize the very real financial and personal stake they have in helping their nurses effectively handle stress.
And the stories are inspiring. Sharing the voices of these powerful, real nurses may be an important step in healing the profession’s broken hearts, strengthening American RNs’ care and practice through a practitioner-centered approach to well-being.
The Resilient Nurses audio podcast is now available online. Editors and bloggers may download and publish graphics and a brief program description from http://www.humanmedia.org/nurse/resources.php.
We hope the program will inspire nurses, nursing professors, nursing students and others in healthcare to begin their own resilient practices.
Christine Phelan Kueter, writer
Source: U.Va. School of Nursing
