3 Ways To Improve Workplace Wellbeing For Nurses — Or Face Dangerous Shortages

Prioritizing Nurse Wellbeing: Explore 3 impactful ways to enhance workplace health and tackle … [+] nursing shortages.

By monkeybusiness

A massive nursing shortage is threatening to disrupt our healthcare system. But here’s the catch—this isn’t just about not having enough nurses. The real issue? A shortage of jobs that nurses are willing to take.

Healthcare economist, nursing professor at the John Hopkins School of Nursing and co-author of The Nursing Human Capital Value Model, Olga Yakusheva, Ph.D., explained it best in my recent interview with her, saying, “Many experts agree there’s not a nursing shortage. There is a shortage of healthcare jobs that nurses are willing to take.” Nurses are seeking flexibility, better compensation, and improved working conditions.

This isn’t something we can simply fix by hiring more nurses. True change calls for systemic improvements in workplace culture and leadership to attract and retain nursing talent. Dr. Yakusheva points out that the healthcare business model often overlooks the wellbeing of its workforce, resulting in burnout and a retention crisis.

Listen this 1-minute audio with Dr. Yakusheva

These challenges aren’t unique to healthcare. Across industries, we see declining levels of work wellbeing—a crucial factor not just for individual sanity but also for business success.

The State of Work Wellbeing

Findings from the Global Work Wellbeing Report 2024 by Indeed reveal:

Higher employee wellbeing is linked to better business outcomes, including company valuation, return on assets, and profits.
Yet, work wellbeing has not rebounded to pre-pandemic levels.
Only 1 out of 5 individuals reports thriving at work.

Note: Indeed’s work wellbeing data collection spans 19 countries, with over 250 million data points collected and surveys completed by more than 25 million individuals.

If you lead a team of nurses and want to keep them engaged and motivated, there’s a clear takeaway here. Improve workplace wellbeing.

Watch this 1-minute interview I conducted with Kyle M.K., Talent Strategy Advisors at Indeed, explain why less than 50% of employers have the tools to improve wellbeing.

3 Drivers of Workplace Wellbeing

Research from Indeed and the University of Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre highlights three critical drivers of wellbeing—ranking even higher than compensation and flexibility:

A Sense of Belonging (environmental factor)
Feeling Energized (individual factor)
Feeling Included (individual factor)

This aligns with findings from my firm’s 2024 Personalization Research Study, which surveyed over 1,500 leaders and managers across multiple industries. Key insights include:

78% of leaders acknowledged a disconnect between workplace environments and employees’ unique needs.
87% of managers felt their environments stifled individuality, with 76% saying they were forced to comply with rigid expectations.

Leaders frequently admit they don’t know how to bridge this gap. Yet, tackling these issues is critical for fostering innovation, growth, and workplace wellbeing.

Why the Challenge?

The difficulty in addressing these drivers stems from outdated leadership practices. Companies often train leaders in new approaches to old ideas rather than encouraging them to adopt new ways of thinking.

Here’s the issue—many leaders don’t understand how the work environment might be unintentionally suppressing employees. True belonging isn’t about creating more labels or categories; it’s about respecting individual realities and making changes that support inclusion and wellbeing.

How to Address Workplace Wellbeing

To improve workplace wellbeing, you need to tackle it on two levels, simultaneously:

Organizational Level

Action:

Ensure the work environment supports and rewards actions that enhance belonging, energy, and inclusion.

Opportunity:

Align business growth objectives with employees’ capabilities.

Return on Investment:

By creating a supportive environment that aligns business growth with employee capabilities, organizations can reduce turnover rates, saving costs associated with hiring and training new staff.
A work environment that fosters belonging, energy, and inclusion can lead to higher employee morale and productivity, directly impacting the bottom line.
Companies known for positive work environments attract top talent, reducing recruitment costs and enhancing competitive advantage.
When employees feel their capabilities are aligned with business goals, it can lead to more innovative solutions and improved business performance.

Individual Level

Action:

Engage in one-on-one conversations with employees. Ask them:

“Do you feel a sense of belonging here?”
“Do you feel energized in your work?”
“Do you feel included on your team or in the organization?”

If the answer to any of these is “no,” follow up by asking, “What changes would help improve this?”

Opportunity:

Elevate their discretionary effort and unlock their potential to accelerate business outcomes.

Return on Investment:

Engaging employees in meaningful conversations about their work experience can lead to personal growth, increasing their contribution to the organization.
Addressing individual needs and fostering a sense of belonging can lead to higher job satisfaction, reducing absenteeism and improving overall performance.
Elevating discretionary effort and unlocking individual potential, employees are more likely to contribute innovative ideas and solutions, driving business growth and success.
Understanding individual needs allows for more effective training and development programs, maximizing the return on investment in employee development.

The Path Forward

Addressing workplace wellbeing is a vital first step to retaining talented nurses and building a thriving workforce. It won’t happen overnight, but by starting with actionable changes, you’ll create a ripple effect of improvement.

Stay tuned for the next three articles in this series, where we’ll explore each driver—belonging, energized, and inclusion—in deeper detail, with real-world examples from the frontlines of nursing.