The Contingent Nursing Workforce during COVID-19: Implications for Policy and Administration

COVID-19 exposed significant supply issues and operating challenges in hospital labor markets. Travel contingent workers, both local and out-of-state, are utilized by healthcare facilities to fill gaps in full-time staffing during periods of increased patient demand or labor shortages. Registered nurses (RNs), or travel nurses, are an essential component of this group. The increase in patient demand for nursing services related to COVID-19 has exacerbated existing RN labor challenges among full-time RN staff leading to an exponential increase in the national demand for contingent RN labor. Existing workplace issues and burnout have also contributed to increased attrition from hospital roles and from the nursing profession altogether leading to additional increased demand for labor from the contingent RN labor force over and above COVID-19 driven demand. Analyzing data from a major digital travel nursing job marketplace illustrates the significant increase in travel nursing pay rates and their relationship with COVID-19 infection rates. Median ICU travel nurse hourly pay increased 55.4% from 2019 to 2023 leading to unsustainable financial strain on hospitals. As health system leaders aim to re-build their nursing workforce following COVID-19, it is It is essential for public health professionals and policymakers to understand the labor market dynamics at play in these two distinct, but intertwined labor markets to implement evidence-based policy and administrative solutions.

Duke Scholars

Author Robert Longyear