Nearly 334,000 healthcare providers left their jobs in 2021, finds an analysis of provider medical claims data by Definitive Healthcare, a consultant to drug and medical device companies.
The largest losses were among physicians and nurse practitioners, with 117,000 physicians and more than 53,000 nurses exiting the workforce in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to a report on the study by Healthcare Innovation.
The nurse data is based solely on those who submit claims, the news outlet noted. But this exodus of workers has been noted elsewhere as well. In ShiftMed’s 2022 annual State of Nursing Survey for example, 65% percent of participating nurses said they intend to leave the profession within the next two years, up 18% from 2021.
Many clinician groups skew older on average, the analysis also found, and are nearing retirement. The average age of nurses in the data was 57, and 33% of all physicians are 59 years of age or older, for example.
Steady loss
A decrease in the ranks of healthcare providers was projected well before the pandemic, but the idea was that a loss of primary care physicians would be offset by nurse practitioners and physician assistants, Todd Bellemare, senior VP-strategic solutions of Definitive Healthcare told Healthcare Innovation. “But looking at everything across physicians and non-physicians, and with 300,000 folks dropping out of the workforce during that two-plus-year timeframe in 2020 and 2021, is really scary.”
With the older population booming and the rate of chronic illnesses growing, the need for home health aides is also skyrocketing, he added.
With not only physicians, but allied professionals leaving as well, the onus is on healthcare systems to keep these workers happy, Bellemare said. With a focus on acute care, his key recommendations aside from higher pay are to significantly reduce the burden of administrative work and help these professionals keep new clinical information under control with ordering programs or physician assistants.
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