providing an acceptable and comfortable work environment
where delivering outstanding care is possible, healthcare
leaders “should ensure that staff have the right tools to
do their jobs effectively, including solutions to improve
productivity, efficiency, and accuracy” (Vega, 2016).
Retention Needs to Become
a Major Ongoing Initiative
The Work Institute reminds us that reducing turnover is
one way that many healthcare organizations could lower
their “human capital costs and increase productivity.” It
warns us, however, that “many organizations argue that
their turnover is acceptable when compared to industry
benchmarks, often citing turnover rates” (Work Institute,
2018) that would be alarming to anyone outside of the
healthcare and hospitality industries. Healthcare leaders
must remain vigilant about turnover and its impact on
effectiveness, care outcomes, and employee satisfaction.
To combat excessive turnover, organizations must identify
the myriad ways they can make employees more satisfied
with their jobs to improve retention. Organizations that
institute such measures will discover that requesting
employee feedback, listening to it, and acting on it increases
attraction and retention and creates a productive workplace
(Work Institute, 2018). We are approaching a situation
where losing staff members has a serious impact on
outcomes. Healthcare workers who are able to provide
and support excellent care are going to become ever more
valuable as the demand for them increases.
Succeeding in our current healthcare environment requires
organizations to make concerted efforts to understand what
workers expect, need, and prefer in the workplace. Now,
more than ever, employees will change jobs if employers
have not made an effort to match staff requirements and
preferences to a degree we’ve never known. Another
situation that employers across all industries have to face
is that even though they can have a significant impact on
turnover, most of them are doing nowhere near enough to
combat it, even as the competition for workers increases, and
the demand for them far outstrips the supply of candidates.
References
ASPE, “Abstract - Predictors of Job Satisfaction and Intent to Leave among Home Health Workers: An Analysis of the National Home Health Aide
Survey. Overview of Job Satisfaction and Turnover Research,” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 8/14/2015. Retrieved at https://
aspe.hhs.gov/report/predictors-job-satisfaction-and-intent-leave-among-home-health-workers-analysis-national-home-health-aide-survey/over-
view-job-satisfaction-and-turnover-research.
Gilsdorf, K., Hanleybrown, F; and Laryea, D., “How to Improve the Engagement and Retention of Young Hourly Workers,” Harvard Business Review,
December 06, 2017, Retrieved At https://hbr.org/2017/12/how-to-improve-the-engagement-and-retention-of-young-hourly-workers
Keller, Jayne, “Caring for those who care: Retaining your team through revolutionizing the workplace,” McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, July 11,
2018, Retrieved at https://www.mcknights.com/guest-columns/caring-for-those-who-care-retaining-your-team-through-revolutionizing-the-work-
place/article/780072/
LaPointe, J., “Management, Job Perception Drive Healthcare Employee Turnover,” RevCycleIntelligence, December 20, 2017, Retrieved at https://
revcycleintelligence.com/news/management-job-perception-drive-healthcare-employee-turnover.
Plemmons, Joy, “2 Remedies for Reducing Burnout Among Healthcare Workers,” Gallup Blog, March 13, 2018, Retrieved at https://news.gallup.com/
opinion/gallup/228305/remedies-reducing-burnout-among-healthcare-workers.aspx.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), Excerpt from From “Evaluation of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Wisdom at Work Initiative,”
2009, Retrieved at https://www.rwjf.org/en/library/research/2009/07/business-case-cost-of-nurse-turnover.html.
Rosenbaum, Michael, “Will 2018 be the year healthcare addresses its turnover problem?” Becker’s Hospital Review, January 16, 2018, Retrieved
from https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/will-2018-be-the-year-healthcare-addresses-its-turnover-problem.html
Rossheim, J., “Healthcare Employers Focus on Employee Turnover,” N.D., Retrieved at https://hiring.monster.com/hr/hr-best-practices/work-
force-management/employee-retention-strategies/healthcare-employee-turnover.aspx.
Sanborn, B., “It’s not just physicians and nurses, non-clinical staff are in short supply for medical practices too,” Healthcare Finance News, May 9,
2018, Retrieved at https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/its-not-just-physicians-and-nurses-non-clinical-staff-are-short-supply-medical-prac-
tices-too-0
Vega, K., “Getting a Handle on Staff Turnover: Keep staff turnover in the single digits for peak performance,” HFMA, October 1, 2016, Retrieved at
https://www.hfma.org/Content.aspx?id=50309&pagesid=1.
Work Institute, “2018 Retention Report: Truth & Trends in Turnover,” available at http://info.workinstitute.com/retentionreport2018.
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