high turnover rates in health care.

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

I would like to hear from other nurses/health care workers....how high is the turnover where u work? Is high turnover rates pretty much the norm in the majority of medical/nursing facilities? I have heard that it hasnt been as high lately d/t the economy but the hospitals in my county still have several job postings - this is due to high turnover rates with nurses not being treated well and basically 'burning bridges' both voluntarily and involuntarily. Not b/c jobs are being added. It also seems that this is almost expected by the #'s of nurses working for staffing agencies.

i dont have a problem switching jobs but it seems it is the same bs everywhere. i am just beginning to notice this b/c my daughter starts school this year and i want her to have stability - so does that put me at a severe disadvantage especially since i am living in a rural area? I am also meeting alot of 'nurses' who aren't workiing in healthcare at all. The lady who owns the coffee shop down the street told me 'she used to be a l&d nurse' and the teachers aide at my daughters preschool also told me the about the same thing. What do y' all think??

I personally have been in my LTC job 1.5yrs and there are 2 nurses who have been there longer than me.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
the hospitals in my county still have several job postings

Don't be fooled. Job listings do not necessarily mean anything.

Hospitals post openings that they never have any intention of filling. Internal policies and procedures mandate that the human resources departments advertise their job openings and interview a handful of candidates in an 'attempt' to fill the positions. However, no one will be hired if the budget does not allow for it, and the nurses who are currently employed will pick up the slack and work harder with more patients.

Ask virtually any unemployed, long-term job seeker and they will tell you that they see the same stale openings being advertised by the same old facilities month after month, year after year.

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Last year, one of my classmates graduated from the BSN program and found a job at the local hospital. I saw her on campus last week and I asked her how did she like being a nurse. SHe replied that she quit her nursing job and is back at school getting a business degree:confused: Turns out she did not like nursing. That's terrible to figure out after you have spent all that time and money on a degree only to find out it's not for you:uhoh3:.

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

I agree commuter...I am very wary of 'job postings' after being employed at that hospital for 1.5 years. Things wont change until safe staffing laws are implemented and administration is held accountable. It is a vicious cycle.

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Last year, one of my classmates graduated from the BSN program and found a job at the local hospital. I saw her on campus last week and I asked her how did she like being a nurse. SHe replied that she quit her nursing job and is back at school getting a business degree:confused: Turns out she did not like nursing. That's terrible to figure out after you have spent all that time and money on a degree only to find out it's not for you:uhoh3:.

Happens more often than you think. The real world of nursing is not the same as what is taught in school.

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Specializes in endoscopy.

My hospital has a high turnover rate because it is located near two military bases (both Army and Air Force) and we constantly have spouses moving to and from our city.

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Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.

I have seen and known many nurses leave and return to the field. I think that is one of the pro's of this job. Many will leave to raise kids and then return when they are able. You can be out approx 5 yrs without a refresher course.

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Specializes in ED, ICU, MS/MT, PCU, CM, House Sup, Frontline mgr.

every facility i have ever worked has a high turnover rate by the bedside. in one department i literally counted 2-4 nurses a month who quit the job for every 1 nurse that began. i thought this was crazy so i talked to my department heads and asked why they were not hiring at least 3-4 nurses at a time. the comment i got was that there were trying but there is not enough qualified nurses to hire. well both statements were a lie.

i knew of qualified nurses who wanted to work there and applied (they were trying to leave another *ahem*-hole and thought that the grass was greener when it was just as bad or worse where i worked). also there were not 3-4 positions open a month. maybe 1 or 2. so i tend to agree with the others.... facilities will post false positions or they do not post at all despite a need. in addition, i too know of nurses who quit nursing to do something else for a living. while others moved away from bedside nursing, but remained working as nurses.

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Last year, one of my classmates graduated from the BSN program and found a job at the local hospital. I saw her on campus last week and I asked her how did she like being a nurse. SHe replied that she quit her nursing job and is back at school getting a business degree:confused: Turns out she did not like nursing. That's terrible to figure out after you have spent all that time and money on a degree only to find out it's not for you:uhoh3:.

Business??? wait till she gets a load of that crap. I know I was in management. I'm in nursing school and I know its gonna be better than business. Try to please the bosses and try and please your employees. No win situation. Hope it works out for her.

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I've come to conclude that you can't blame it on healthcare. I believe the problem lies in working with the public. Consider such occupations as teachers, social workers, nurses, police officers, paramedics, etc. All of those occupations have prolonged exposure to masses of people with complaints and issues that the noted occupations are expected to resolve for the public but can't. That creates tension and conflict that becomes overly burdensome.

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Business??? wait till she gets a load of that crap. I know I was in management. I'm in nursing school and I know its gonna be better than business. Try to please the bosses and try and please your employees. No win situation. Hope it works out for her.

Her background is in business, she just did not have the degree.

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Business??? wait till she gets a load of that crap. I know I was in management. I'm in nursing school and I know its gonna be better than business. Try to please the bosses and try and please your employees. No win situation. Hope it works out for her.

I agree, that is truely an "at will employee" type of position. I do not miss management.. :cool:

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