Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1521985
18 NURSING SPOTLIGHT Why nearly 8,000 nurses left their jobs By Paige Twenter T he U.S. has an all-time record number of actively licensed nurses — 5.6 million — but hospitals are struggling to recruit and retain enough. To discover missed opportunities, researchers surveyed 7,887 nurses who recently exited the healthcare industry. Each nurse was asked to list the contributing factors for their decision. Planned retirement was the leading factor, with nearly 2 in 5 nurses selecting that factor, but burnout, exhaustion, staffing shortages and family obligations were also top reasons. The nurses left their jobs between April 2018 and June 2021, and the researchers focused on RNs in New York and Illinois. On average, the respondents were 60 years old and had 30.8 years of experience. Among the listed reasons, 39% of the former nurses selected planned retirement, 26% chose burnout or emotional exhaustion and 21% said insufficient staffing contributed to their exit. About 60% of retired nurses indicated a planned retirement, suggesting that about 40% of retirements were unplanned, the researchers said. Among those employed by a hospital, other top contributing factors were family obligations, COVID-19 concerns and unsafe working conditions. "They are struggling to recruit and keep staff because of the conditions versus compensation issue," a former hospital nurse, aged between 40 to 50 years old, said. "Patients are sicker and more complex than ever … I was constantly voicing concerns for patient safety because of frontline working conditions … Can I get another nursing job? Absolutely … Do I want to? Not really." Based on the results, the researchers advised employers to address burnout, insufficient staffing and family obligations. Findings were published April 9 in JAMA Network Open. n 'Creative' nurse shifts gain traction at Mercy Health hospital By Mariah Taylor A t Mercy Health-St. Rita's Medical Center in Lima, Ohio, gone are the traditional scheduling demands for nurses. Instead, nurses get "creative shis" that fit their needs, Cory Werts, MSN, RN, chief nursing officer for the Lima market, told Becker's. e hospital — part of Cincinnati-based Bon Secours Mercy Health — utilizes a centralized staffing and scheduling department that can see the scheduling needs of every unit. is allows Mercy Health-Lima to be as flexible as possible with nurses while ensuring staffing levels are met. "It helps tremendously because they can see the big picture," she said. "It allows us to offer unconventional schedules while also maintaining the same level of staffing and without needing to hire many new nurses." e system allows for unconventional shis such as: • 12-hour shis starting at any time • 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedules • Schedules for new mothers. ese are given to new mothers who are transitioning back into the workplace aer an absence. "ey have some unique needs that we have tried to fit to the best of our ability, particularly nursing mothers," Ms. Werts said. • Flexibility with weekend shis. Nurses have to work a certain number of weekends, but they choose which ones to work. e flexible shis are available to everyone, though some prefer more traditional schedules. "We are doing the best we can to match that organization to individual priorities," Ms. Werts said. "It really is about learning who your people are and doing the best that you can to meet them where they're at and serve them so they can serve your patients." e flexibility has also aided in the hospital's resignation recovery process. When management learns that a nurse is considering resigning, it immediately responds by offering more flexibility. Ms. Werts said leaders work to meet the nurses' needs for work-life balance however possible. e flexible scheduling has helped reduce nurse turnover rates from 23% during the height of the pandemic to 12.5% today, she said. It has also helped reduce what had been a growing experience gap between those who have the experience and those who are coming into the profession. "ere is a shrinking number of mentors and preceptors as people retire and age out of the profession and a growing volume of people entering nursing who are far younger," Ms. Werts said. "ere's this big gap in the middle where we're running out of people to mentor, which creates a barrier to new nurses at the time they need to grow into their nursing shoes." Flexibility is one element that can keep more experienced nurses on to help transfer knowledge to the upcoming generation."n