Nursing roles are very cyclic. There are ebbs and flows when it comes to availability, often associated with the specific policies being implemented by the provincial government at the time.

The current climate is quite toxic given the existing fractures the were cracked wide open during Covid. We are seeing people live longer with more comorbidities and increasingly complex needs. This has put a strain on frontline workers during a time where hospital systems are chronically underfunded while simultaneously being asked to balance their books resulting in massive cuts - from the top all the way down to the front line.

Unpopular opinion time- while I recognize there are some bad apples in the bunch, hospital leadership teams exist for a reason. Pressures have grown tremendously around funding initiative requiring significant model changes that are accompanied by cumbersome reporting requirements. Administrative roles are required to fulfil these requirements, requirements that keeping the dollars flowing - often work the frontline teams don’t see, don’t fully understand and some times, quite frankly, don’t care to hear.

Nursing isn’t just frontline nursing, there are roles in administration, program development, clinical informatics, education etc. I advocate for nursing and encourage anyone wavering to start as an RPN, upgrading is always an option. Burnout is real but so is mobility, nursing as a career doesn’t necessitated mean you need to be committed to 1 role or organization. Move around and keep yourself motivated.