Data Reports.

Insights into Connecticut Nursing and Healthcare Workforce
Lisa Sundean, PhD, MHA, RN

Connecticut Nursing Education Reports

DID YOU KNOW?

Supply of Registered Nurses in Connecticut
​​Data Source: Connecticut Nurse Licensure Program, 2020 and 2022. Published in September 2023.
From 2020 to 2022, the Number of Licensed Nurses Increased by 16,480 from 73,339 to 89,819.
  • Much of this increase was a result of COVID-19. 
  • Nationally licensed nurses rallied to care for CT residents.
Number of Licensed Nurses does NOT Correlate with the Number of Actively Working Nurses:
  • In 2020, CT had 73,339 licensed, but only 36,953 were actively working.  50% Working
  • In 2022, CT had 89,819 licensed, but only 51,514 were actively working.  57% Working
In 2022, 50% of RNs are Over the Age of 50. 
  • 23% of RNs are between the ages of 30-39.
  • 22% of RNs are between the ages of 50-59
  • The most startling data findings is ONLY 11% of nurses are between the ages of 20-29!
Highest Nursing Degree held by the Working Nurse:
  • In 2022, 20% held an Associate Degree, 52% held a Baccalaureate Degree, 20% held a Masters Degree, and 2% held a doctorate degree. (5% did not report.)
Top TWO Work Settings for the Actively Working Nurse:
  • From 2020 to 2022, the number of Nurses who worked in Hospitals increased from 14,652 to 18,906 or 25 %
  • From 2020 to 2022, the number of Nurses who worked in Ambulatory Care increased from 3,408 to 4,991 or 32 %
Top TWO Positions that Nurses hold are Staff Nurse and Nurse Manager, respectively:
  • From 2020 to 2022, there was an increase in Staff Nurses from 18,804 to 25,050 or 25%
  • From 2020 to 2022, there was an increase in Nurse Managers from 3,652 to 4,825 or 24%
Number of Working Nurses does NOT Correlate with the Number of Nurses Working in a Nursing Capacity:
  • In 2020, CT had 36,953 nurses actively working, but only 33,019 were working in a nursing capacity.  89% working nurses work in a nursing capacity.
  • In 2022, CT had 51,514 nurses actively working, but only 45,014 were working in a nursing capacity.  87% of working nurses work in a nursing capacity

Connecticut Nursing Workforce Supply Reports

Nursing Workforce Data Trends and Connecticut Recommendations

Registered nurses (RNs) are critical to a functioning healthcare system. Evidence is mounting that recruitment and retention of bedside nursing staff in acute care hospitals is a challenge of increasing magnitude. Connecticut faces significant obstacles in ensuring an adequate number of highly skilled bedside nurses in an era of aging and medically complex patients. 

​Below are two reports sharing the challenges and recommendations for solutions to produce a robust and sustainable nursing workforce in CT!
CLN  CHA Report- Promoting and Empowering Bedside Nurses in CT- March 2 2020
CLN and CHA Workgroup White Paper- Promoting and Empowering Bedside Nurses March 2, 2020

Connecticut Nursing Faculty Shortage

Barriers experienced by Academic Institutions to increase student enrollment.

Connecticut Nursing Education & Supply

2005 Enhancing the Education and Supply of Nurses in Connecticut: Report and Recommendations are intended to provide information and a direction for action that will help assure that Connecticut will have a sufficient number of well-educated nurses to meet the healthcare needs of our citizens. The Deans and Directors of nursing programs in Connecticut are in a unique position to access the capacity and resources for nursing education and participate with other stakeholders in determining the workforce size and composition that is required for the future.​
​

DID YOU KNOW?

Supply of Licensed Practical Nurses in Connecticut
Data Source: Connecticut Nurse Licensure Program, 2020 and 2022. Published in September 2023

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From 2020 to 2022, the Number of Licensed LPNs Increased by 1,278 from 13,144 to 14,422
Number of Licensed LPNs does NOT Correlate with the Number of Actively Working LPNs:
  • In 2020, CT had 13,144 licensed, but only 7,130 were actively working.  54% Working
  • In 2022, CT had 14,422 licensed, but only 9,990 were actively working.  69% Working
Number of Working LPNs does NOT Correlate with the Number of LPNs Working in a Nursing Capacity:
  • In 2020, CT had 7,130 LPNs actively working, but only 6,113 were working in a nursing capacity.  86 % of LPNs were working in a nursing capacity.
  • In 2022, CT had 9,990 LPNs actively working, but only 8,343 were working in a nursing capacity.  84 % of LPNs were working in a nursing capacity
In 2022:
  • 23% of LPNs were between the ages of 30-39
  • 25% of LPNs were between the ages of 40-49
  • The most startling data findings is ONLY 7 % of LPNs are between the ages of 20-29!
Highest Nursing Degree held by the LPN:
  • In 2022, 53% held an LPN Certificate, 17% held an Associate Degree, 6% held a Baccalaureate Degree, 1% held a Masters Degree (23% did not report.)
Top TWO Positions that LPNs hold are Staff Nurse and Other-Health Related roles, respectively:
  • From 2020 to 2022, there was an increase in Staff Nurse LPNs from 4,459 to 6,113 or 27 %
  • From 2020 to 2022, there was an increase in Other-Health Related roles from 607 to772 or 21%
Top TWO Work Settings for the Actively Working LPN:
  • From 2020 to 2022, the number of LPNs who worked in Long Term Care increased from 2,888 to 3,766 or 23%
  • From 2020 to 2022, the number of LPNs who worked in Home Health increased from 756 to 1,015 or 25%

Comprehensive Nursing Education Recommendations

CLN's 2005 Key Elements for a Comprehensive Nursing Education Plan for the State of Connecticut
Nurses comprise the largest percentage of Connecticut's healthcare workforce. Thus it is critical that all those concerned about the health of our citizens play an active role in creating solutions to ensure that the supply of nurses at all levels will be sufficient to provide for our citizens' health and to address current and future public health needs.
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National Nursing Reports.

Nursing Academic Progression

Trends in Nursing Academic Progression 2016-2020
NEPIN, the National Education Progression in Nursing collaborative, sought to locate and evaluate a single data source to equitably interpret current trends in academic progression. Created as an expansion of the former Academic Progression in Nursing (APIN) initiative of the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation, NEPIN is the only national entity solely devoted to ensuring that nurses have access to higher levels of education and achievement. Operating under the fiscal oversight of the OADN Foundation (a federally recognized 501c3 nonprofit organization), NEPIN’s stakeholders understand that successful patient outcomes depend on a well-equipped and sufficiently supported nursing workforce.

The Future of Nursing

The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health
This report is being published at a time of great opportunity in health care. Legislation passed in March 2010 will provide access to health care for 32 million more Americans. The implications of this new demand on the nation's health care system are significant. This report begins with the assumption that nursing can fill new and expanded roles in a redesigned health care system. To take advantage of these opportunities, however, nurses must be allowed to practice in accordance with their professional training, and the education they receive must better prepare them to deliver patient-centered, equitable, safe, high-quality health care services, engage with physicians and other health care professionals to deliver efficient and effective care.

Nurse Educator Shortage

2010 NLN Nurse Educator Shortage Fact Sheet
The National League for Nursing and the Carnegie Foundation Preparation for the Professions Program conducted a study of the nation's estimate 32,000 nurse educators in the 2005-2006 academic year. The NLN/Carnegie Foundation project sought to identify and investigate factors contributing to the shortage of nurse educators, an indisputable source of the decade-long shortage of nurses plaguing the nation's health care system.
2010 NLN Nurse Educator Shortage Fact Sheet

Nurse Job Growth Projections

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nurse Job Growth Projections, 2008-2018
The Bureau of Labor publishes projections for a range of economic factors, including, but not limited to, the size and makeup of the labor force, the size of the economy, industry employment and output, and occupational employment. The occupational employment projections, the focus of this article, are partially dependent on expectations for the other aforementioned economic factors.
Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nurse Job Growth Projections, 2008-2018

2025 Annual Nursing Workforce Supporters

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