Wisconsin's health worker shortage is well documented. An aging population is driving up the demand for healthcare as hospitals and clinics throughout the state report stubbornly high staff vacancy rates. The Wisconsin Hospital Association references NSI Nursing Solutions data that shows Wisconsin’s recruitment difficulty index for registered nurses to be more than 100 days.

Quoting from the report, “Staff shortages are part of a cascade of challenges—a vicious cycle that includes rising workforce costs without concomitant reimbursement increases, workforce and financial limits on capacity and services, and even the unthinkable—the first hospital closures in Wisconsin in more than a decade.”

That’s on the direct care side. On the public health side, Wisconsin has appeared at or near the bottom of national rankings of public health funding for years, which exacerbates workforce burdens at the community level while pushing poor health conditions further downstream. And that’s without the additional weight COVID added to the system.

A thriving health workforce is critical for ensuring that people in our state achieve their full potential. When health workers are supported and well, they can offer better, more compassionate care. Prioritizing their well-being leads to better health outcomes for all.

AHW has signaled its commitment to the state’s health workforce by identifying Health Workforce Well-Being as one of three Landmark Initiatives in its current Five-Year Plan, noting that Wisconsin is one of only three states in the nation without a physician wellness plan. The others are Nebraska and California.

Wisconsin’s approach will only succeed if it is developed and implemented by those who live this reality every day.