Survey: Nurse Resignations Increase at 30％ of Public Hospitals

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:52 JST, June 4, 2023

About 30% of public hospitals saw an increase in the number of nurses leaving the profession in the last fiscal year compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to a Japan Municipal Hospital Association survey.

Some hospitals said they have been forced to close wards because of the number of nurses who resigned citing fatigue after more than three years on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The survey was conducted nationwide in February and March, and among the 858 public hospitals surveyed, 173 responded.

Thirty-one percent of respondents, or 54 hospitals, reported an increase in the number of nurses who left the profession compared to pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, 62%, or 108 hospitals, said the level was unchanged, and 6%, or 11 hospitals, said the number of nurses who left the profession decreased.

Among the hospitals that reported an increase in the number of nurse departures, 40%, or 24 hospitals, cited the pandemic response as a factor.

Before the pandemic, the percentage of nurses leaving the profession was often in the single digits, according to the association. Last year, it exceeded 10% at some hospitals.

“I’m so worn out physically and emotionally that I want to take some time off,” one nurse reportedly said.

Some hospitals said they have not been able to hire replacements, resulting in ward closures.

“Public hospitals, which are largely responsible for treating coronavirus patients, have been working hard since the early stages of the epidemic,” said Japan Municipal Hospital Association Chairman Yutaka Oguma, who is also director emeritus of Sunagawa City Medical Center in Hokkaido.

“We hope that nurses [who have resigned due to] mental and physical fatigue will rest and return to the field when they have recovered,” Oguma said.