Psychiatric Nursing Workforce Survey: Results and Implications

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Mental Health
• Healthcare Workforce

Background:

• The last national survey of psychiatric-mental health (PMH) nurses was in 2016, focusing only on advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs).
• Understanding the demographic and employment characteristics of the PMH nursing workforce is crucial for optimizing services to meet rising mental health demands.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a national survey of PMH registered nurses (RNs) and PMH-APRNs.
• To gather comprehensive data on the demographic, educational, and practice characteristics of the PMH nursing workforce.

Main Methods:

• An email survey was distributed to members of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association and certified PMH-APRNs between October 2020 and February 2021.
• Separate surveys with 51 (RN) and 52 (APRN) questions were used, informed by the Minimum Data Set for the Behavioral Health Workforce.

Main Results:

• A total of 4,088 PMH-RNs and 5,158 PMH-APRNs completed the survey, with a 12.1% response rate.
• The PMH nursing workforce is aging but shows a slight increase in diversity.
• 62.4% of PMH-RNs practice in hospitals, while 70.4% of PMH-APRNs practice in outpatient settings; 44% of PMH-APRNs reported most patients have federal insurance.

Conclusions:

• The PMH nursing workforce faces significant retirements in the next five years, necessitating proactive planning.
• Hospital-based practice is common for PMH-RNs, but opportunities exist for expansion into community settings in collaboration with PMH-APRNs.
• Prioritizing increased diversity within the PMH nursing workforce is essential.