The cost of employee turnover to a regional poison information center

The quality and effectiveness of a regional poison information center (RPIC) are directly related to the skills and experience of the professional staff of specialists in poison information and to having the appropriate number of individuals in order to accurately and concisely respond to the thousands of telephone calls concerning acute/chronic poisoning emergencies. Since RPICs are traditionally small departments, the loss of even 1 key staff member can cause devastating results. A realistic appraisal of the actual costs associated with employee turnover was done at our RPIC and considered the following items: Advertising and recruiting expenses; interviewing expenses; processing costs; orientation and training expenses; and overtime costs including fringe benefits and premium shift differentials. The over-all tangible costs related to turnover of an individual who is certified or qualified to be certified as a specialist in poison information is approximately $17,486. The specific cost categories included advertising/recruiting, $326; interviewing expenses, $360; orientation and training, $9,250; processing, $350; overtime monies, $7,200. The less tangible effects of turnover cannot be strictly measured in dollars, but can be reflected in reduced quality assurance factors, increased sick time, and decreased morale. While staff salaries and benefits usually account for 75% to 85% of a RPIC's operating budget, and since external sources of revenue do not offset the operational expenses, it is becoming increasingly difficult to remain competitive in today's current professional salary climate. While the loss of talent and its cumulative effect on quality is impossible to quantitatively measure, we have attempted to calculate the real financial burden associated with replacing personnel.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)