Nurses Leave Jobs for New Careers

09/20/23 • 19 min

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Reporter Megan Burbank spoke with former nurses who, amid grievances like staffing shortages and low pay, changed their careers.

Nurses took on immense responsibilities as COVID-19 raged across the country, overloading hospitals and overextending health care workers.

Today, some of these nurses have left the field completely due to mounting pressures that were exacerbated by the pandemic – but had existed long before.

Freelance reporter Megan Burbank talked to several former nurses in Washington about the stressors that led them to leave their field for new career paths like massage therapy and web development.

In this episode of Crosscut Reports, host Maleeha Syed talks with Burbank about what drew these nurses to the field; what pushed them out; and how their lives have changed for the better since leaving.

Read our full report on how people are adjusting to life after nursing here.

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Credits

Host/Producer: Maleeha Syed and Scot Michael

Reporter: Megan Burbank

Executive producer: Sarah Menzies

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Reporter Megan Burbank spoke with former nurses who, amid grievances like staffing shortages and low pay, changed their careers.

Nurses took on immense responsibilities as COVID-19 raged across the country, overloading hospitals and overextending health care workers.

Today, some of these nurses have left the field completely due to mounting pressures that were exacerbated by the pandemic – but had existed long before.

Freelance reporter Megan Burbank talked to several former nurses in Washington about the stressors that led them to leave their field for new career paths like massage therapy and web development.

Read our full report on how people are adjusting to life after nursing here.

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Credits

Host/Producer: Maleeha Syed and Scot Michael

Reporter: Megan Burbank

Executive producer: Sarah Menzies

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Previous Episode

The Push to Preserve Mobile Home Communities

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Residents say that WA-based management company Hurst & Son LLC is responsible for price hikes, reduced services and other grievances.

Mobile home communities have long served as an affordable-housing option for Washington residents, but many say they’re now being priced out of their homes.

Crosscut reporters Farah Eltohamy and Mai Hoang investigated allegations against Hurst & Son LLC, a company that has acquired dozens of mobile home parks across the state in recent years. Some residents allege that the company is responsible for rent hikes, new fees and reduced services.

Now these community members are pushing back against Hurst & Son – which is not the only company that has been accused of these practices.

In this episode of Crosscut Reports, host Sara Bernard talks with Eltohamy about why mobile homes are not in fact mobile; the different ways community members are advocating for themselves; and why it’s so important for them to stay where they are.

Read our full report on the fight to preserve mobile home communities here.

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Credits

Host/Producer: Sara Bernard and Scot Michael

Reporter: Farah Eltohamy and Mai Hoang

Executive producer: Sarah Menzies

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Next Episode

WA Teachers Face Public Backlash

Politics reporter Joseph O’Sullivan talked to teachers about the increasing criticism they face at school over race and LGBTQ+ topics.

Teachers have found themselves embroiled in a national culture war as parents and politicians question what children are learning in school, from critical race theory to gender identity.

These days, educators in Washington say they’re feeling reverberations from this conflict.

Crosscut’s state politics reporter, Joseph O’Sullivan, wrote about how these confrontations are contributing to burnout among educators and union leaders at a time when their field is experiencing a labor shortage.

In this episode of Crosscut Reports, host Maleeha Syed spoke with O’Sullivan about the pushback these educators are getting from their communities – and how these encounters are impacting them.

Read our full report on the pushback that educators in Washington are experiencing here.

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Credits

Host/Producer: Maleeha Syed and Scot Michael

Reporter: Joseph O’Sullivan

Executive producer: Sarah Menzies

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