Young nurses are leaving the profession at alarming rates, according to a recent report by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI). The study found that 40 per cent of nurses aged 35 and under are not renewing their practising licenses, raising concerns about the future of healthcare staffing.
Key Findings of the Report
Released in October 2025, the MEI report analyzed data from 2023 and 2024 on the supply of nurses in Canada. It revealed that for every 100 nurses aged 35 and below who enter the workforce, 40 will leave. This attrition rate threatens to overstretch an already strained healthcare system.
Emmanuelle Faubert, the economist and researcher at MEI who authored the report, stated: "What we're seeing is that nurses are being burnt out, and this leads to a lot of them leaving their profession." She emphasized that young nurses, though less experienced, represent the future of the profession and provide significant direct patient care.
Systemic Issues Behind the Exodus
The report highlights that job vacancy rates in nursing jumped from around 13,000 in 2018 to more than 41,000 in 2023. In typical markets, such shortages would lead to higher wages and better conditions. However, the healthcare sector does not follow this pattern due to government micromanagement.
Faubert explained: "The healthcare industry is a very regulated and mostly public system, with essentially one large employer, the government. In other markets, you have different types of employers: public, private, and non-for-profit. Because there is one big employer, they don't have the incentives to make changes because there's no competition."
Provincial restrictions on nurses' agency, such as Quebec's ban on nursing agencies, exacerbate the issue. Faubert noted: "Essentially, the government is telling nurses, 'You accept the working conditions I have set up, or you don't work as a nurse in this province.' This is very problematic."
Solutions: Flexibility and Streamlined Processes
The report points to British Columbia as a model for addressing attrition. Over the past 10 years, B.C. improved its inflow and outflow ratio of young nurses by 50 per cent, citing an increased total inflow of all types of nurses as a key factor.
For nurses applying from abroad, the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives implemented a triple-track assessment, requiring only one application for three nursing streams. This reduced costs and streamlined hiring for registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and healthcare assistants.
Faubert recommends system-wide adjustments, including flexible scheduling and simplifying application processes, to improve attrition rates and retain young nurses in the profession.
