Healthcare staffing in 2026 is not the same problem it was three years ago. The shortage has not been resolved. It has restructured. The U.S. is projected to face a shortfall of over 3.2 million healthcare workers, burnout remains the leading driver of turnover, and the cost of replacing a single nurse now sits between $40,000 and $60,000. Staffing operations managers are being asked to do more with less, and the old playbook of layering on agency spend is no longer sustainab
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