Mid career nurses and midwives

As we gain more experience and confidence in our roles, some of us are promoted to leadership and management positions. Sometimes, that move is quicker than anticipated and often without the support to take on these extra roles and responsibilities.  

With the rewards of our advancement come challenges that can risk leading to burnout and even leaving our professions.  

Meeting expectations

If you are in a managerial role, balancing the expectations of executive management and the team you’re leading can be challenging and exhausting. 

At this stage of our career, we have the ability and opportunity to influence team culture and organisational practices. But often, we face system barriers. Trying to lead a healthy workplace culture when faced with resistance or bureaucracy can wear us down.   

Challenges we face

In our mid-career many of us experience employer-related issues, career dissatisfaction, mental health and emotional issues and the impacts of workforce shortages. We know that nurse and midwife shortages lead to worsening working conditions, which can result in burnout and frustration.  

We may also face personal issues, and life pressures can increase too. Many of us are juggling multiple roles caring for children and older family members.  

Essential factors to keep nurses at work

A healthy work environment has been identified as the most important factor in nurses’ decision to stay in the profession and, indeed, for their own wellbeing. 

Based on the McKinsey 2021 Future of Work in Nursing Survey, nurses have said they need:

• supportive and caring colleagues
• feeling valued and appreciated in the workplace
• a safe and manageable work environment, including balanced workloads
• engagement in meaningful work, operating within one's scope of practice
• flexibility to maintain a healthy work-life balance

Think about what you want and need

If you’re feeling stressed, tired, or apathetic in your work, it could be signs of burnout, or it also might be that you need to take a career and/or workplace inventory. Take stock of your current situation and assess whether your workplace is meeting your needs, including fostering a healthy culture and offering professional development opportunities for growth.

Source: McKinsey 2021 Future of Work in Nursing Survey

References 

• COVID-19 pandemic one year on: ICN warns of exodus of experienced nurses compounding current shortages, 2021, International Council of Nurses 
• Should I stay, or should I go? Australia’s nurse retention dilemma, 2021, McKinsey and Company