Thorne Canam, Dahinten Hall

ABSTRACT

The global nursing workforce constitutes the backbone of healthcare delivery systems and plays a critical role in ensuring access to safe, effective, and patient centered care. However, healthcare systems worldwide are currently facing an unprecedented shortage of nursing professionals, creating significant challenges for service delivery, workforce sustainability, and patient outcomes. Factors such as population aging, increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, workforce burnout, migration, inadequate educational capacity, and the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to persistent nursing shortages across both developed and developing nations.