Improving nursing assistant turnover and stability rates in a long-term care facility

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Human Resources
• Nursing Staffing

Background:

• High nursing assistant turnover poses significant challenges to healthcare facility operations and quality of care.
• Existing metrics often fail to capture the full picture of workforce stability.
• Understanding turnover drivers is crucial for effective retention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate formulas for calculating nursing assistant turnover and stability rates.
• To identify common reasons for nursing assistant termination.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of facility-specific strategies aimed at reducing turnover and enhancing stability.

Main Methods:

• Development of novel formulas for quantifying nursing assistant turnover and stability.
• Analysis of termination data to identify key reasons for employee departure.
• Implementation and evaluation of targeted, facility-specific retention initiatives.
• Longitudinal tracking of turnover and stability rates over two years.

Main Results:

• Nursing assistant turnover rates showed a slight increase from 23% in year 1 to 28% in year 2.
• Stability rates remained consistently high, at 76% in year 1 and 75% in year 2.
• Implemented strategies did not significantly alter overall turnover but contributed to sustained high stability.

Conclusions:

• Calculating both turnover and stability rates provides a more comprehensive understanding of workforce dynamics than turnover alone.
• High stability rates indicate successful retention of qualified nursing assistants, even with moderate turnover.
• Facilities should prioritize strategies that enhance both low turnover and high stability for optimal staffing.