By Jill Benware, Market Research Analyst, API Healthcare
As changes to the industry continue to unfold, healthcare employees are making some changes of their own. The 2013/2014 Human Capital Effectiveness Report: Trends for the Healthcare Provider Sector, shows the voluntary turnover rate, or the rate at which hospital employees willingly left their position, increased from 8.9 percent in 2011 to 9.5 percent in 2012. Nurses had the highest voluntary separation rate at 9.6 percent, while 6.3 percent of physicians left voluntarily.
The fact that the rate is increasing, should come as no surprise. Nurses and doctors that could have retired during the recession opted to remain working to protect their individual finances. This created a lack of opportunities available in the industry, causing many employees to stay in their current positions. Now that the economy is on the road to recovery, the landscape of open positions is changing. A survey by Harris Interactive on behalf of Randstad Healthcare reports that fifty-four percent of health care workers believe they could find a new job in the next 12 months.
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By Jill Benware, Market Research Analyst, API Healthcare
As changes to the industry continue to unfold, healthcare employees are making some changes of their own. The 2013/2014 Human Capital Effectiveness Report: Trends for the Healthcare Provider Sector, shows the voluntary turnover rate, or the rate at which hospital employees willingly left their position, increased from 8.9 percent in 2011 to 9.5 percent in 2012. Nurses had the highest voluntary separation rate at 9.6 percent, while 6.3 percent of physicians left voluntarily.
The fact that the rate is increasing, should come as no surprise. Nurses and doctors that could have retired during the recession opted to remain working to protect their individual finances. This created a lack of opportunities available in the industry, causing many employees to stay in their current positions. Now that the economy is on the road to recovery, the landscape of open positions is changing. A survey by Harris Interactive on behalf of Randstad Healthcare reports that fifty-four percent of health care workers believe they could find a new job in the next 12 months.
While some turnover is healthy, too much turnover can cripple your organization. The time it takes to properly fill a position and get them ramped up can be significant. Forty eight percent of nursing jobs go unfilled for eight weeks or longer. The extended vacancies cause added stress to the remaining employees, which in turn can increase the voluntary turnover rate. It is a never ending cycle!
What can you do to stop the cycle?
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Understand, recognize and acknowledge employees’ needs.
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Help employees understand how their role is connected to the mission and vision of the organization.
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Develop career paths. Communicate the path for each position so that employees have a mechanism to grow within your organization and in turn support their long term career goals.
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Develop an environment that encourages respect and collaboration across the organization.
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Develop policies that encourage teamwork and minimize hierarchy.
Employees that believe that they are a valued part of the organization, no matter how large or small the organization may be, will be happier, more productive, and less likely to job hunt. In other words, they will be a valued asset for years to come.
About The Author
Jill Benware is the Market Research Analyst for API Healthcare, the largest healthcare-specific vendor focused on workforce management solutions. Jill has been with API Healthcare for 18 years in a variety of roles to include Manager of Systems Implementation and Customer Service Quality Assurance Manager. For the last four years, Jill has been responsible for researching and reporting on trends in healthcare workforce management. Jill has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from St. Norbert College.
