Refuting the Claims and Reframing the Reality of Nursing

R.E. Hengsterman
2 days ago
5 min read

Nurse in a mask and scrubs stands confidently in a hospital waiting area. Background shows seated people wearing masks, creating a serious mood.

The Claims We’ve Heard

“The system runs on the back of nurses — breaking themselves to keep it from collapsing.”
“We (nurses) are the safety net for a system with holes too big to mend.”
“It’s not resilience — it’s survival. And no one should have to die for a paycheck that barely lets them live.”

These statements capture perceived truth about stress, moral injury, and strain in nursing. But they also carry implicit assumptions about collapse, indispensability, and inevitability that merit careful scrutiny. If we rely solely on narratives of breakdown, we risk missing nuance: to see where nursing is strong, where change is possible, and where reform is needed.

And if we rely solely on the voices of those whom the system has already broken—psychologically or emotionally—we may draw false assumptions about the entire profession. Their pain is real, but it is not the whole story.

Perspective from the Inside

I do not speak of this from abstraction or distance. I spent thirty years working in two academic, Level I trauma centers—where the pace never slows and the margin for error is microscopic. There is little I have not seen: the physical and psychological collapse of nurses, physicians, and, at times, ancillary staff pushed beyond their limits.

Yes, nurses are a key component of the healthcare machine. But they are part of a larger, intricate ecosystem of professionals—respiratory therapists, paramedics, pharmacists, unit secretaries, radiology techs, environmental services, and countless others—whose collective function keeps care moving.

The system does not run on the back of a single profession. It runs on collaboration, often messy, sometimes miraculous, but shared all the same.

The Economic & Statistical Reality of Nursing

Let’s look at the data, so we can ground our discussion in economic viability and professional standing.

Median wage: For registered nurses (RNs) in the United States, the median annual wage in May 2024 was $93,600. (bls.gov)
Employment outlook: Employment of RNs is projected to grow 5 % from 2024 to 2034—faster than the average for all occupations.
Job openings: About 189,100 openings for RNs are projected annually over that decade.
Ranking: Nursing ranks #3 among top jobs for Gen Z graduates with six-figure potential.
Industry growth: Healthcare and social assistance remain among the most consistent sectors for job creation, even during economic downturns.

These statistics tell us that nursing is not just surviving—it is economically viable, professionally ranked, and in demand. The idea that nurses are only limp supports for a collapsing system is therefore an incomplete narrative.

Where the Reality Is Messy: Hazards, Burnout, Risk

Of course, the profession also has serious problems—ones we must acknowledge honestly:

Work can be physically and mentally taxing: long shifts, night work, high acuity, emotional labor.
Violence and danger have increased in many care settings (EDs, psychiatric units, long-term care).
Burnout and moral distress remain persistent across healthcare environments.
Staffing shortages and turnover are real: hospitals continue to report high vacancy rates for nursing roles.

Yes, nurses are under pressure. But it is not the norm that nursing must equal breakdown or collapse. Recognizing hardship is distinct from accepting hopelessness.

Hospitals, Staffing Strategy, and the “Shortage” Narrative

Another layer of truth sits beneath the surface: how hospitals manage staffing—and how that shapes the mythos of the so-called “nursing shortage.”

While many units do experience acute staffing gaps, there is mounting evidence that some hospitals intentionally keep staffing levels low as a cost-containment strategy.

The labor union National Nurses United (NNU) has noted that many hospital systems “intentionally understaff every unit, every shift with fewer numbers of nurses than are actually required … to maximize profits and excess revenue.” (nationalnursesunited.org)

At the same time, data from the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics (Penn LDI) suggest that the problem is less about the supply of nurses and more about where they’re willing to work:

“The unwillingness of large numbers of nurses to work in facilities that maintain poor nurse working conditions is creating a critical labor shortage.” (ldi.upenn.edu)

In other words, the “shortage” is not absolute—it’s contextual.

Some hospitals operate lean by design, prioritizing budget margins over buffer staffing.
Some nurses leave bedside roles not due to lack of calling, but due to burnout, workplace violence, or chronic understaffing.
And yes, on social media, the claim “there is no nursing shortage” circulates widely. Some of it is click-bait; some comes from credible professionals; some from those psychologically fractured by the work—or by something predating it.

The truth lies between extremes. There are localized shortages. There are deliberate staffing constraints. There are nurses who’ve had enough—and systems that could function better if they valued retention as much as recruitment.

We can’t call that a shortage. It’s a distribution problem, not a disappearance.

Are Nurses Holding Up a Broken System—or Part of What’s Breaking It?

Medical errors are now recognized as a major public health crisis—recently ranked the third leading cause of death in the United States. Research estimates that over 400,000 hospitalized patients experience preventable harm each year, and that more than 200,000 deaths annually are linked to avoidable medical mistakes.

The financial impact is staggering: adverse events cost the healthcare system roughly $20 billion each year, while hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) alone contribute an additional $35 to $45 billion in annual expenses.

Nursing, like every clinical discipline, is embedded in this reality. The profession is essential—but it is not infallible.

Medication errors, patient falls, documentation lapses, communication failures, and equipment misuse all add layers of preventable cost, harm, and litigation risk. These mistakes don’t just extend hospital stays or strain budgets; they fracture trust in the very system we claim to uphold.

So yes, nurses are indispensable—but we are not the singular force keeping healthcare from collapse.

At times, we prevent harm; at other times, we absorb it—and occasionally, we contribute to it. Recognizing all truths is essential. The narrative that nurses alone are “holding up a broken system” oversimplifies a complex, multi-professional ecosystem. Healthcare’s fractures are systemic, not singular.

Repair will not come from glorified endurance, but from honest accountability—shared by all who work within it.

Rewriting the Narrative

We’ve earned acknowledgment.

What healthcare needs isn’t more sacrifice; it needs structural renewal. The profession’s future will hinge on steady footing: sustainable workloads, secure environments, equitable pay, and a culture that values cooperation over exploitation.

If we can shift from survival to advancement, from martyrdom to modernization, the story of nursing will change—and perhaps, finally, so will the system.

But that shift won’t come from telling a click-bait narrative on Instagram. It will come from honest data, informed dialogue, and a collective refusal to mistake outrage for reform.