The costs of nurse retention and turnover has received a lot of attention in recent years, with recent reports indicating that the physical expense ranges from $20,000 to $60,000 per nurse turnover. The literature highlights that these costs are made up not only of the liability incurred through the re-advertising of positions and employment process, but the related productivity losses from the departure of the nurse.

In verifying the costs associated with nurse turnover, the total value of direct and indirect costs associated with that departure must be taken into consideration. Direct costs are generally related to those expenses that are directly related to that particular activity. In the case of nurse turnover, examples of these direct costs include the advertising and other costs incurred by the medical institution to market the newly available position in an attempt to recruit a suitable replacement. On the other hand, indirect costs are less tangible, and involve aspects such as the productivity loss, loss of knowledge, social cohesion or workforce morale as a consequence of the individual leaving the medical facility.

In respect to the cost of turnover, health care organisations have found a new ally - one which radically reduces the costs of attracting new staff while limiting the impact of productivity losses - the nursing recruitment agency. With a continuous supply of qualified and experienced staff, a simple phone call is sometime all it takes for the medical organisation to secure their new staff member. As the potential staff have already been vetted and interviewed by the meticulous consultants at the recruitment agency, they are able to start immediately, limiting the damage that drawn out recruitment processes can create in terms of productivity loss.

The other side of the story is the benefit of retention. Medical and healthcare literature is rife with articles, research and cases studies which postulate these benefits, including: increased levels of patient safety and quality of care, rising levels of satisfaction experienced by nurses and their patients, increased productivity and nurse safety. Although many medical institutions are attempting to implement retention policies and programmes, many have realised that this is simply not enough. Retention policies do not address the need for increasing efforts to be placed on nursing recruitment strategies in light of the growing shortages of nurses, resultant increasing demand and the pressures placed on the workforce requirements due to retirements and an ageing population - which requires an ever mounting level of health services.

As a consequence, many leading health and medical organisations are establishing close relationships with nursing recruitment agencies to form part of the short and long term strategy in relation to their workforce requirements. Not only can these agencies react quickly to workforce requests, but can provide nursing recruitment solutions that satisfy these short and long term goals.