Revisiting nurse turnover costs: adjusting for inflation

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Economics
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Accurate knowledge of nurse turnover costs is crucial for healthcare organizations.
• Frequent primary data collection for these costs can be impractical in dynamic healthcare settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a feasible method for inflation adjusting baseline nurse turnover costs.
• To enable nurse executives to maintain current cost knowledge and evaluate retention investments.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to adjust historical nurse turnover cost data.
• Applying an inflation adjustment formula to baseline cost figures.

Main Results:

• Provides a practical approach to estimate current nurse turnover expenses.
• Facilitates the calculation of potential financial savings from improved nurse retention.

Conclusions:

• Inflation adjustment using CPI is a viable strategy for understanding current nurse turnover costs.
• This method supports evidence-based decision-making for nurse retention initiatives and resource allocation.