Investment in nurse well-being benefits the global population
Worldwide health services continue to experience the negative effects of health crises like COVID-19, nurse shortages, declining birth rates contrasted with growing numbers of older adults and economic constraints. Evidence links nurse well-being to delivery of high-quality patient care, so there is a need to address the mental well-being of nurses, who have higher than population rates of risk for suicide, substance use disorders and burnout. Mental health nurses are leading the delivery and design of work-based well-being programmes.
Mental health nurses lead the delivery and design of work-based well-being programmes that benefit them and help to ensure high-quality patient care
Increasing financial instability, geographic shifts and political change are contributing to an unprecedented time of global uncertainty.
Health services across the world continue to experience the negative impacts of health crises like COVID-19, nurse shortages, declining birth rates contrasted with growing numbers of older adults and economic constraints. According to the World Health Organization’s State of the world's nursing report 2025, such trends are compounded by increasing acuity and complexity of illnesses.
The International Council of Nurses’ Sustain and Retain in 2022 and Beyond: The Global Nursing Workforce and the COVID-19 Pandemic underlines that despite examples of innovations and investment in mental health services, the need for mental health care is high and capacity is strained.
‘There is a growing body of empirical evidence that links nurse well-being to delivery of high-quality patient care’
Providing high-quality care requires services and mental health nurses to adapt, shift treatment from hospital to home and capitalise on the benefits of technology and preventive care.
Why there is an urgent need to address the mental well-being of nurses
There is a growing body of empirical evidence that links nurse well-being to delivery of high-quality patient care, signalling the need to address the mental well-being of nurses, who have higher than population rates of risk for suicide, substance use disorders and burnout.
The 2018 Health Affairs article Nurses’ and patients’ appraisals show patient safety in hospitals remains a concern shows that workforce shortages due to poor retention, low recruitment of nurses and insufficient value of nursing services can directly compromise nursing care outcomes.
Far from being a luxury, an investment in the well-being of nurses is, in fact, an investment in the health of the population.
Mental health nurses lead the delivery and design of well-being programmes
To address these issues, mental health nurses are leading the delivery and design of work-based well-being programmes, and advocating for access to restorative clinical supervision, safer working conditions and opportunities for continuous learning and career advancement.
The actions set significant precedents in promoting the importance of mental well-being in the wider healthcare workforce. It is imperative that these initiatives continue and are expanded as such actions have demonstrated improvement in retention, staff morale and pride in nursing. The Professional Nurse Advocate Programme is one such example.
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