CNOs should model wellness for burnt out staff

Nursing leaders should prioritize rest, boundaries and well-being to combat staff burnout, says a leader affiliated with a report on burnout from Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Draper, Utah. They should encourage nurses to eat lunch, take breaks and use available mental health resources. Leaders can offer structured mentorship, transparent communication, manageable early-career workloads and environments where novice nurses feel safe asking questions or voicing concerns. Nurse leaders can provide predictive workforce planning accounting for patient acuity, census, flexible scheduling models and investment in float or cross-trained nurses. The study found 74% of nurses said they felt emotionally exhausted multiple times a week in the last month; 25% of Gen Z nurses said they did not seek available mental health resources due to confidentiality or career impact concerns. (HealthLeaders Media article, 3/23/26)