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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Th
e National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses (NSSRN) is the longest running survey of registered
nurses (RNs) in the United States. Since its inaugural assessment in 1977, the NSSRN has provided
educators, health workforce leaders, and policymakers with key details and developments of the nursing
workforce supply. Considered the cornerstone of nursing workforce data, this comprehensive exploration
provides a dynamic status of the RN population by revealing their demographics, educational attainment,
licenses and certifications, and employment characteristics. These continued data collections have
supported evaluations of government RN workforce programs, assisting in critical decision making
affecting the U.S. healthcare system. Highlighting the intricacies of the current RN status is essential for
developing strategies that address present-day healthcare challenges and the evolving nursing workforce
needs.
Since the last survey administration in 2008, the NSSRN questionnaire underwent a complete content
review, and large improvements were made based on changes in US health care landscape and best
practices in survey methodology. The latest survey also aims to reduce redundancy in the collection of
data and lower the response burden on participants. The 2018 NSSRN comprises questions derived from
both the National Sample Survey of Nurse Practitioners (NSSNP) and the NSSRN for one concise survey
capturing a broader RN workforce and is the first production implementation that provides data for both
RNs and Nurse Practitioners (NPs) at the state and national levels.
In collaboration with the U.S Census Bureau, the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis
administered the 10
th
NSSRN data collection in 2018. From April 2018 to October 2018, a total of 50,273
registered nurses completed the survey via a web instrument or a paper questionnaire with an
unweighted response rate of 50.1 percent (49.1% weighted). This instrument gathered data from
participants with active RN licenses from all U.S. states revealing a comprehensive look into the RN
workforce.
Key Findings
There are an estimated 3,957,661 licensed registered nurses living in the United States. In 2017,
roughly 83 percent (3,272,872 RNs) held a nursing related job.
The average age of an RN was 50 years old; however, most nurses (53%) were less than 50 years
old.
Nurses are more diverse today than shown in the 2008 NSSRN study. Both minority groups and
men have seen a slight increase within the RN population.
Most of the RN workforce is college educated (63.9%). Of them, nurses with a master’s or
doctorate degree accounted for 19.3 percent.
Advanced Practice RNs account for approximately 11.5 percent of the nursing workforce.
Telehealth capabilities were reported in 32.9 percent of nurses’ workplaces. Among them, 50.3
percent of nurses used telehealth in their practice.
Median earnings for full-time RNs were $73,929, while part-time RNs earned a median amount
of $39,985.