High Turnover? Maybe It’s a You Problem
I said it. Maybe turnover is a you problem.
Stay with me here.
If you follow the news, economic forecasts or anything remotely connected to the outside world, you’re hearing a lot about recession and labor shortages. So, logically, that could explain why your practice is experiencing high turnover. And that’s that, right?
Except, it’s not. I wish it were simple, but if it were, then you’d be destined not to have a capable, well-trained team working with you. It’s not that you’re a bad boss or yours is a toxic work environment (if it is, that’s a whole other conversation).
You need a different strategy.
Let’s look at some facts. Turnover is expensive in terms of money, time and energy. Hiring and training new staff is time-consuming. It can also be a huge energy drain to you and your team on top of keeping your practice running. Labor statistics show the cost of turnover is at least equivalent to that position’s salary, if not several times multiplied. That’s compounded by lost productivity, decreased speed, training and the time that position remains vacant.
Most data on healthcare turnover is from studies on hospital centers, so these numbers may be a little different for your practice, but let’s take a look at an example:
According to the 2022 NSI National Healthcare Retention & RN Staffing Report, the RN turnover rate in 2021 was 27.1%, and the average cost of turnover for a bedside RN is more than $46,000, which costs the average hospital between $5.2 million and $9 million per year. Each percentage point increase or decrease in turnover represents a loss or savings of $262,300 per year.
Let’s say your practice runs best with seven full time RNs and your turnover is 27%. Two RNs leave this year. The cost is over $92,000 to hire two more nurses. If your turnover stays at the same rate year over year, you’ll be carrying heavy costs to keep up with your staffing needs. You can do the same math for any position at your practice and see the impact on the bottom line. This doesn’t take into account the time spent writing, placing and managing posts on employment sites, interviewing candidates and all of your due diligence before bringing on a new team member. And then there’s the aforementioned training period and human power required to work with your new employee before they’re up and running.
You need a different strategy.
One of my clients has a complementary medicine practice in a small, rural town. In general, their location and the low population density are challenging enough, not to mention a glaring shortage of registered nurses. So, when they needed to hire an RN to run the clinical side of the practice, we had several angst-ridden conversations about whether finding a qualified, experienced candidate was a pipe dream, or if it could indeed become a reality.
Rather than get stuck on the “fact” that it’s hard to find qualified RNs willing to work in a small private practice, we decided to make them stand out as an employer. I also reminded my clients that they needed only one impressive candidate to fill this role. To facilitate this, we dedicated a coaching session to outlining their strengths and what sets them apart as a private practice.
In the job post, we highlighted the practice’s hours are basically banker’s hours, Monday thru Friday, so candidates knew they would have a consistent schedule, which was a huge draw. They also offered competitive pay with additional benefits like healthcare, education stipend, and support with their own health and wellness at low or no cost to them.
Because this client’s practice is dedicated to seeking and treating the root cause of disease and chronic illness, we focused on their mission and commitment to their values. We also addressed staffing shortages (a major reason RNs cite leaving their jobs) by showing my client’s commitment to making their practice an intimate, spa-like experience for their patients. Their schedule would never be overbooked. For the exhausted, burned-out nurse, this created an opportunity to work in an environment where patients choose to be there, are dedicated to improving their health, and where the employer is committed to keeping stress levels low and job satisfaction high.
Our intention was to make it clear that working with my client could present an opportunity to boost their clinical knowledge and to work in a calm, beautiful setting with a doctor who is committed to helping their patients heal and take charge of their wellbeing.
This strategy helped my clients find the ideal candidate who was growing weary of seeing patients in her previous role getting sicker, and she was thrilled to find a position where her schedule was predictable. She was qualified to step into a leadership role as the clinic manager, so this worked out to be a win-win scenario. Do you want to know how many candidates they interviewed? Three. They were all good candidates, but the one they hired stood out above the others.
There’s no question that these are challenging times. Staffing shortages are real. Burnout is real. But you don’t have to get the short end of the stick because of this.
You can take a different strategy:
Get clear about your strengths and what sets you apart from other practices.
Get clear about your mission and vision, and communicate them with your team and prospective employees.
Lean in to your strengths and vision, and a whole lot can change for the better.
We help our clients navigate the challenges of being a provider-owner by taking back their time and finding the right strategy to grow their practice without burning out. If you’d like to talk strategy with us, schedule a complimentary Practice Assessment Strategy call. We’d love to see what’s possible for you and your team.