Health care leaders face a daunting set of challenges — rising costs, the transition to digital health, and shifting payment models, to name just a few. But according to a recent survey from the American College of Healthcare Executives, the No. 1 problem hospital CEOs face is staff shortages and burnout.1 Ninety percent of the CEOs surveyed cited nursing shortages as a particularly acute pain point.

In 2021, the total number of registered nurses working in the U.S. dropped by the largest amount in 40 years, with younger nurses leading the exodus.2 By 2025, the U.S. health care system could suffer a shortfall of up to 450,000 nurses, or 20% fewer than the nursing workforce required for patient care.3