Impact Cost and Quality with Workforce Strategies | 11
effectively and compassionately, and they
feel the impact physically, emotionally and
mentally when the workload is not balanced.
So when nurses aren't matched correctly with
their patients - either they don't have the
necessary qualifications to provide adequate
care or have too much work for the number of
patients they have to treat - they can quickly
become dissatisfied with their jobs.
According to the Contingent labor for
Health Research and Quality (AHRQ), the
risk of nurse burnout increases by 23 percent
and dissatisfaction by 15 percent for each
additional patient a nurse receives
10
. However,
when hospitals have accurate staffing,
nurse burnout and dissatisfaction can drop
significantly. Staffing turnover is costly: As
noted earlier, replacing a healthcare employee
can cost up to 250% of their salary
4
. Taking
into account the rate of nurse turnover,
hospitals can lose between $3.74 million and
$4.98 million every year
11
.
Yet, surprisingly, many hospitals don't track
their turnover. According to the NSI study,
83.9 percent of health care respondents don't
record the costs of employee loss
11
. With
the report finding that the vacancy rate for
nurses is expected to grow, hospitals need
to do all they can to keep retention high
to avoid a lapse in patient care quality and
a need to increase nurse workloads even
more. By embracing acuity-based staffing,
CFOs can see dramatic improvements in
retention through equitable assignments and
a decrease in nurse turnover costs.
Conclusion
With so many demands on hospital resources,
finding ways to reduce labor expenses directly
impact an organization financially. Savvy CFOs
understand that working with CNOs and nurse
managers to optimize nursing resources is a
top priority for significant cost savings.
As we enter the era of accountable care,
healthcare providers will need to concentrate
their attention on acuity-based staffing to
ensure the hospital is able to provide quality
care for positive patient outcomes and to
keep nurse turnover low. For CFOs to truly
see cost savings, they must increase their
collaboration with nursing administrators
and place greater value on strategic nurse
staffing initiatives. The real payoff of CFOs
embracing acuity-based staffing is that it
empowers them to manage labor costs and
ensure the delivery of quality care - benefiting
the entire health system. A hospital's success
relies on improving both clinical and financial
outcomes, and data-driven acuity-based
staffing will help health systems remain
profitable now and in the future.
1
Herman, Bob. "10 Statistics on Hospital Labor Costs as a Percentage
of Operating Revenue." Becker's Hospital Review: Dec. 10, 2013.
Retrieved from http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/racs-/-icd-9-
/-icd-10/10- statistics-on-hospital-labor-costs-as-a -percentage-of-
operating-revenue.html on Jan. 13, 2014.
2
Retrieved from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/
ThePracticeofProfessionalNursing/NurseStaffing
3
Retrieved from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/
ThePracticeofProfessionalNursing/NurseStaffing
4
http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/HIMSS13 -retaining-
top-HIT-talent-45651-1.html?zkPrintable=true
5
"2013 National Healthcare & RN Retention Report." NSI
Nursing Solutions, Inc.: 2013. Recovered from http://www.
nsinursing solutions.com/Files/assets/library/retention-institute/
NationalHealthcareRNRetentionReport2013.pdf on Jan. 13, 2014.
6
Retrieved from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/
ThePracticeofProfessionalNursing/NurseStaffing
7
Buerhaus, P., Harris, M., Leibson, C., Needleman, J., Pankratz, S.,
Stevens, M.S. "Nurse Staffing and Inpatient Hospital Mortality." The
New England Journal of Medicine: March 17, 2011. Retrieved from
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa1001025 on Jan. 2,
2014.
8
"Patient Deaths in Hospitals Cost Nearly $20 Billion." Contingent
labor for Healthcare Research: Nov. 4, 2009. Recovered from http://
archive.ahrq.gov/ news/newsroom/news-and-numbers/110409.html
on Dec. 31, 2013.
9
Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24101063
10
Retrieved from http://innovations.ahrq.gov/content. aspx?id=3708
11
Retrieved from http://www.nsinursingsolutions.com/Files/
assets/library/retention-institute/NationalHealthcareRN
RetentionReport2013.pdf
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