We all know the typical reasons people leave their jobs: limited opportunities for advancement, poor leadership from senior management, and unsatisfactory compensation/benefits. NOW Healthcare Recruiting decided to dig a little deeper to learn why medical professionals, specifically, decide to leave their jobs. Here’s what we found out:
5 Reasons Medical Professionals Change Employers
1-Burnout
Burnout is one of the primary reasons health professionals leave their jobs. Some of the main contributing factors to their burnout could be that they are seeing too many patients at a time, or working too many weekends or hours in general. Healthcare professionals need to have a healthy work/life balance so that they can provide safe and compassionate patient care and also have a healthy life outside of work.
What employers can do:
Be realistic in your expectations of an employee. In Diane Shannon’s article “Why I Left Medicine: A Burnt Out Doctor’s Decision to Quit”, she stated, “I don’t think we can fix the U.S. health care system by expecting superhuman performance from humans under super-sized stress.” If your employee is burnt out because you have placed an impractical workload on him or her, maybe you should reevaluate your expectations.
Don’t believe the lie that you are saving money by hiring fewer nurses. Replacing burnt-out nurses and risking poor patient care can actually end up costing more money than hiring fewer nurses.
Other actions that employers can take include conducting employee surveys, providing child care facilities, and setting up workshops on work-life balance.
2-Workplace Drama
Disagreements can be inevitable when working in a demanding environment with coworkers of diverse personalities. However, if these disagreements escalate, they could result in poor patient care or employment turnover. It is important for management to counteract this progression of conflict.
What employers can do:
- Develop a system of healthy team communication. If your team has an agreed-upon way to resolve conflict, then it will be possible to stop the harmful consequences of workplace drama in its tracks. Some practical ways to develop a conflict resolution system are to assume the best in another employee or intentionally exhibit extra patience towards new co-workers who may have less experience or training than they do.
- Praise workers for their heroic role in the lives of patients. Regardless of their feelings towards the specific position they work in, every healthcare professional can bring an invaluable gift to each of their patients and families: extending and improving the quality of life. Encourage workers to have a willing and compassionate attitude that reflects their mission, instead of an attitude that shows begrudging unwillingness to go the extra mile. This kind of humility will undoubtedly reduce unnecessary conflicts among employees.
3-Feeling Undervalued by a Superior
If an employee feels unappreciated by their superior, they will often develop work-related apathy and even look for a different employer who will make them feel valued. It is imperative that supervisors intentionally encourage and esteem their employees if they want to keep them long-term. It costs nothing to praise workers, but it can be costly to withhold praise.
What Employers Can Do
- Give timely, affirmative responses to excellent work. When you notice an employee taking initiative to give superior care to a patient, or helpful instruction to a new co-worker, tell them you notice and appreciate their effort. This can be done through an audible affirmation or through a personalized note or email.
- Give rewards based on performance, not because it’s an employee’s turn. Routine rewards like “Employee of the Month” are not usually very encouraging or motivating because workers will feel that their recognition is simply a matter of waiting for their turn. Rewards should be given for genuine responses to outstanding work.
- Encourage patients and their families to write positive reviews about or thank you notes to their medical practitioner. Health centers have little control over how challenging a patient acts towards their healthcare practitioners. However, groups can promote kind reviews and thank you notes to outstanding workers. Some health centers host employee “Gold Star Awards” in which patients are encouraged to nominate employees who have demonstrated outstanding patient care. It is encouraging to workers if they get to see the reasons why they were nominated, even if they do not win.
4- Original Employment Agreement Terms Not Honored by the Employer
Many employers can be misleading in their description of a position and even in the employee agreement in terms of pay, PTO, benefits or hours in order to entice candidates. However, if groups do not honor their agreement to the worker, many employees will switch to an employer who they believe will keep their promises.
What Employers Can Do
- Be honest in expectations. Groups need to be very clear about what is expected from the worker. Be as detailed and specific as possible on the front end about what the position entails.
- Keep promises. This is often easier said than done, but it is crucial in order to keep happy, long-term employees.
5- Boredom
Health professionals need to feel challenged at their workplace, because constant monotony can lead to less motivation, enjoyment and productivity in their workplace. A few causes of boredom for health workers include not getting to use the skill set they were trained for, or not seeing the type of patients they want to see.
What Employers Can Do
- Meet with workers periodically to ensure they remain engaged and excited about their work. If they tell you that their tasks have become very repetitious and monotonous, try to assign a variety of new tasks to help them feel more challenged.
- Understand their expectations and desires. A person feels a sense of accomplishment and pride when they get to do something in which they are uniquely gifted. Talk with them about any skills and abilities that they would like to use more at work.
Ultimately, retaining your best medical professionals comes down to proactive, empathetic leadership. While compensation and benefits will always be important, addressing the hidden drivers of turnover like burnout, toxic workplace dynamics, and broken promises is essential for long-term retention. By fostering a supportive environment, recognizing outstanding patient care, and honoring your commitments, you can build a resilient team that feels valued and challenged.
Reducing healthcare staff turnover not only saves your facility significant recruiting costs but also ensures consistent, high-quality patient care. Taking the time to evaluate your current workplace culture and implementing these targeted strategies can help keep your medical staff engaged, motivated, and happy.
What steps is your healthcare facility taking to improve employee retention? Contact our team today to learn how we can help you find and retain top-tier medical professionals.
By Dorothy Blalock