'The ones that got away': Implementing an exit policy for nurses in a public hospital

Cheryl-Ann Hawkins
Registered Nurse, Master of Health Administration Student, VIC

Louise O'Connor
Assistant Director of Nursing; Business Manager, Nursing, Box Hill Hospital, VIC

Sharee Potter
Associate Unit Manager, Medical Unit, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville VIC

PP: 029 - 036

Abstract

The shortage of registered nurses in Victoria led a Melbourne metropolitan hospital to analyse their recent staff attrition rate. This analysis highlighted the importance of having an exiting policy in place for all departing staff.

An exit policy can provide unique opportunities for hospitals to collect information that may help reduce future employee turnover through the identification of the causes of employee dissatisfaction. This paper will discuss the literature and outline the project that aided in the analysis of the hospital's attrition rate and development of a practical exit policy.

| More

Keywords

retention; attrition; nursing; exit interview


View references

References

Barret,C. (2000) 'What Do Nurses Want?'. Nursing Spectrum. 12A (23).

Buhler, P.M. (2002) 'Managing in the new millennium'. Supervision. 63 (4): 15-17.

Brotherton, P. (1996) 'Exit interviews can provide a reality check.' HR Magazine. 41 (8): 45-49.

Campion, M.A. (1991) 'Meaning and measurement of turnover: Comparison of alternative measures and recommendations for research. Journal of Applied Psychology. 76 (2): 199-212.

Contino, D.S. (2002) 'How to slash costly turnover.' Nursing Management. 33 (2): 10-13.

Department of Human Services (2001). Nurse Recruitment and Retention. Final Report May 2001. www.dhs.vic.gov.au (Accessed May 2002).

Duffield, C., Franks, H. (2002) 'Career paths beyond nursing and the contribution of nursing experience and skills in attaining these positions.' International Journal of Nursing Studies. 39 (6): 601-609.

Duffield, C., O'Brien-Pallas, L. (2002) 'The nursing workforce in Canada and Australia: two sides of the same coin.' Australian Health Review. 25 (2): 136-144.

Feldman, D.C., Klaas, B. S. (1999) 'The impact of exit questionnaire procedures on departing employees' self-disclosure.' Journal of Managerial Issues. 11 (1): 13-25.

Giacalone, R., Knouse, S., Montagliani,A. (1997) 'Motivation for and prevention of honest responding in exit interviews and surveys.' The journal of Psychology. 131 (4): 438-448.

Illife,J. (2001). 'Nursing workforce issues: An international perspective.' Australian Nursing Journal. July. http://www.anf.org.au/pubs_anj_010/.html (Accessed June, 2002)

Kennedy, M, Zolot, J. and Nelson-Hogan, D. (2000) 'State of the Nursing Shortage', American Journal of Nursing, 100 (12): 20-21

Knouse, S.B. (1989). 'Farewell to fruitless exit interviews.' Personnel 66: 60-62.

Meyer, G. (1991). 'New program conducts exit interviews.' HRMagazine. 36 (1): 27-30

National Health & Medical Research Council. (2003). When Does Quality Assurance In health Care Require Independent Ethical Review? AusInfo. Canberra.

Newman, K., Maylor, U. (2002). 'The NHS plan: nurse satisfaction, commitment and retention strategies.' Health Services Management Research. 15 (2): 93-105.

Thomas, M. (2000). 'Getting employee retention: A guide for busy managers.' http://www.exit-interviews.com/archive/news2.htm (Accessed May 2002)

Truman, M. (2000). 'Let's hang onto what we've got', Nursing Management, 6(9): 5.

Victorian Government. (2000) Information Privacy Act 2000. http://www.dms.dpc.vic.gov.au/sb/2000_Act/A00814.htm (Accessed June 2002)

Zimmerman, P. (2000). 'The nursing shortage and what can we do?'. Journal of Emergency Nursing, 26 (6): 579-582.



RSS Facebook Twitter

Sign Me Up

*Email Address
First Name
Surname

Web Feed

Latest Articles

Special Issues

Advances in Contemporary Health Care for Vulnerable Populations
Volume 42/1
Summary


Advances in Contemporary Community & Family Health Care (3rd edn)
Volume 41/1
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Complex Health Care: Nursing Interventions
Volume 40/2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Community and Family Health Care (2nd edn)
Volume 40/1
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Nurse Education (2nd edn)
Volume 38/1-2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Indigenous Health Care (2nd edn)
Volume 37/1
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Nursing: Workforce and Workplaces
Volume 36/1-2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Modeling of Clinical Nursing Care
Volume 35/2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Mental Health Nursing (2nd edn)
Volume 34/2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Nursing and Gender
Volume 33/2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Nurse Education
Volume 32/1-2
Summary | Contents


Advances in Contemporary Nursing: History of Nursing and Midwifery in Australasia
Volume 30/2
Summary | Contents


crossref.org - The citation linking backbone



Website by Arrowsmith Websites. Website Design Sunshine Coast, Australia.