Some nurses are working extra 12-hour shifts, sometimes even seven days a week, to make up for the lack of nurses. | Unsplash/Mulyadi
Some nurses are working extra 12-hour shifts, sometimes even seven days a week, to make up for the lack of nurses. | Unsplash/Mulyadi
The state of Iowa is facing an impending shortage of medical help as more nurses quit because of COVID-19 related burnout.
As the country faces a new wave of COVID-19 cases brought on by the highly virulent delta variant, KIWA Radio reported that Iowa bedside nurses have been retiring early or quitting in higher numbers in the last year due to stress arising from the coronavirus pandemic.
“It is horrifying to live here. I am immunocompromised and need to go to Iowa City for infusions and treatment," JavaIowaResists wrote in an Aug. 23 Twitter post. "@uiowa does not care who they kill. I can't imagine their hospital is happy about this. Nurses want to quit because they are exhausted.”
With COVID-19 cases up and a shortage of available nurses, some nurses are working extra 12-hour shifts, sometimes even seven days a week, according to Radio Iowa.
While there has been an increase of applications to nursing programs due to the pandemic, it can be difficult to retain nurses, even more so in Iowa, where registered nurses have one of the lowest average rates of pay in the country, Radio Iowa reported.
A report stated that roughly 25% of Iowa nurses leave their job within the first year, according to KIWA Radio.
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