“It looks heroic,” Atherton, of Singing River Ocean Springs Hospital, told CNN. “But that’s not what it is. It’s sweaty and hard and chaotic and bloody. And it’s hard to live in this every day and then go home and live a normal life.”

Mississippi now has at least 2,000 fewer nurses than it did at the beginning of the year, according to the Mississippi Hospital Association’s Center for Quality & Workforce. The staff shortages add to the growing strain on the state’s hospital system — both due, in large part, to the Covid-19 pandemic.

When asked if the health care system is reaching a breaking point, Singing River Nursing Manager for Personal Care Buddy Gager said, “I think we already broke.”…

“Do I think it’s going to fix the problem? A lot of nurses have told me it’s not about the money at this point. It’s about, ‘I need to recharge my battery,'” said Dr. Randy Roth, Chief Medical Officer of Singing River Health System.