Nurses Entering and Leaving the Workforce
A positive value indicates an increase (or net gain) and a negative value indicates a decrease (or net loss) in the number of nurses.
The difference between the number of nurses entering and exiting the workforce for all provinces/territories except Quebec, divided by the population estimate for the province/territory, and multiplied by 10,000.
Annual rate of nurses entering and leaving the workforce = (Entries that year – Exits that year ) ÷ Population estimate for that year x 10,000
Total population of selected provinces/territories.
The difference between the number of nurses entering and exiting the workforce in a jurisdiction and year.
“Entries” refers to nurses who were registered in the jurisdiction of their employment and who were employed in direct patient care there in a given calendar year, but who were not so the previous calendar year.
“Exits” refers to nurses who were registered in the jurisdiction of their employment and who were employed in direct patient care there in a given calendar year, but who were not so the following calendar year.
Methodology
Name
Nurses Entering and Leaving the Workforce
Short/Other Names
Net New Nurses
Description
Difference between the number of nurses entering and exiting the workforce in a jurisdiction and year, per 10,000 population.
“Nurses,” in this measure, are defined as those who are registered to practise and who report providing direct patient care.
“Entering” includes, but is not limited to, those who recently graduated, migrated from other jurisdictions or countries, or returned to the workforce after extended leave.
“Exiting” includes, but is not limited to, those who recently retired, migrated to other jurisdictions or countries, left the profession, or took extended leave from the workforce.
Rationale
ϱ workforce planners and decision-makers need to understand the number of nurses in the workforce and their movement patterns in to and out of the workforce. This indicator provides a measure of net change by considering both entries to and exits from the workforce for a given year.
Interpretation
A positive value indicates an increase (or net gain) and a negative value indicates a decrease (or net loss) in the number of nurses.
HSP Framework Dimension
ϱ system inputs and characteristics: ϱ system resources
Areas of Need
Not applicable
Targets/Benchmarks
Not applicable
Available Data Years
(calendar years)
Geographic Coverage
- All provinces/territories except Quebec
Reporting Level/Disaggregation
- Province/Territory
- Type of nurse (registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, registered psychiatric nurse)
Indicator Results
Update Frequency
Every year
Latest Results Update Date
Updates
Not applicable
Description
The difference between the number of nurses entering and exiting the workforce for all provinces/territories except Quebec, divided by the population estimate for the province/territory, and multiplied by 10,000.
Annual rate of nurses entering and leaving the workforce = (Entries that year – Exits that year ) ÷ Population estimate for that year x 10,000
Type of Measurement
Rate - per 10,000 population
Denominator
Description:
Total population of selected provinces/territories.
Inclusions:
Provincial and territorial population estimate from Statistics Canada
Exclusions:
Not applicable
Numerator
Description:
The difference between the number of nurses entering and exiting the workforce in a jurisdiction and year.
“Entries” refers to nurses who were registered in the jurisdiction of their employment and who were employed in direct patient care there in a given calendar year, but who were not so the previous calendar year.
“Exits” refers to nurses who were registered in the jurisdiction of their employment and who were employed in direct patient care there in a given calendar year, but who were not so the following calendar year.
Inclusions:
- Nurse types: Registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs).
- Nurses who are registered in the jurisdiction of their employment and who are employed and providing direct patient care.
For nurses, direct care includes many areas: medical/surgical care, psychiatric/mental health care, pediatric care, maternal/newborn care, geriatric care, long-term care, critical care, community health, ambulatory care, home care, occupational health, operating room/recovery room, emergency care, nursing in several clinical areas, oncology, rehabilitation, public health, telehealth, palliative care, child and adolescent services, developmental habilitation/disabilities, addiction services, acute services, forensic services and other patient care. - Where data is not sufficient to measure direct patient care in some provinces/territories, for some nursing types “supply” is reported. “Supply” includes nurses with an active registration, even if they are not employed in direct patient care. For 2022, “supply” is reported for RNs in Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Manitoba, as well as for LPNs in New Brunswick.
Exclusions:
- Nurses with a non-practising registration.
- Nurses whose province/territory of registration differs from the province/territory of employment (except where one of these jurisdictions is a territory).
- Nurses who are employed in a capacity that is not direct patient care, such as administration and teaching. However, where “supply” is used due to data quality constraints, these nurses are included.
- Data for nurses living or working outside Canada who have not maintained a Canadian licence.
Method of Adjustment
Not applicable
Geographic Assignment
Place of service
Data Sources
- Demography division, Statistics Canada
- HWDB
Caveats and Limitations
- Registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) are regulated in and reported for Manitoba, Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia only.
- Record-level data for RPNs licensed in the Yukon is not submitted to CIHI. The Government of Yukon provides aggregate counts; therefore, analysis related to entries and exits is not possible in this case.
- Record-level data for licensed practical nurses (LPNs) licensed in Nunavut is not submitted to CIHI. The Government of Nunavut provides aggregate counts; therefore, analysis related to entries and exits is not possible in this case.
- For Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Manitoba RNs and for New Brunswick LPNs, supply is reported instead of nurses who provide direct patient care. (The latter is also known as the “direct care workforce.”) Caution should be used when comparing supply rates with direct care workforce rates.
- Nurses’ employment status and status of providing direct patient care is based on self-report at the time when a nurse renews their registration.
- Over-coverage may occur when nurses submit an active practising registration but are on leave and may not actually be practising.
- There is no unique identifier in the data across provinces and territories; therefore, entries and exits cannot be tracked at the national level.
Trending Issues
Not applicable
How to cite:
Canadian Institute for ϱ Information. Nurses Entering and Leaving the Workforce. Accessed April 19, 2025.
If you would like ϱinformation in a different format, visit our Accessibility page.
Comments
This indicator is part of a set of common indicators to measure progress on the priority areas to improve health care announced by federal, provincial and territorial governments in 2023. Additional information is available on the Shared ϱ Priorities web page.