9. Survey Find Half of Nurses Are Planning a Career Change
A recent AMN Healthcare survey of registered nurses found that almost half of all nurses plan to make a career change over the course of the next three years. The survey asked questions regarding job satisfaction and the effect of the economic recession on nursing career plans.
More specifically, the survey found that 15% of nurses plan to find a new employer if the economy improves within the next year, 28% said they would not be working in their same position within one year, 46% worried that their current jobs were affecting their health, 29% planned to quit nursing either through retirement or finding a job in another field, 55% believe that the quality of nursing has declined since they started working as nurses, 36% said they would not recommend nursing as a career.
The survey also asked nurses to comment on the nursing shortage over the past five years: 33% said the shortage has worsened, 28% said they have seen no change, and 39% said the shortage is not a bad as it was five years ago.