Burnout and turnover are problems that all HR teams confront, but they can be particularly acute in the healthcare industry. Many healthcare employees work long hours in high-stress environments, face hazardous workplace conditions, and contend with unique emotional challenges due to the immense responsibilities of caring for patients. All these problems were compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, which already increased high turnover rates among healthcare employees and had a long-term impact on many organizations.
These are why it’s critical for HR teams in the healthcare industry to offer comprehensive support for their employees, from registered nurses (RNs) on the frontlines to backend employees responsible for patient outreach, managing huge amounts of sensitive data, and other demanding administrative tasks. As healthcare workers continue to deal with persistent feelings of stress, frustration, and fatigue on the job, HR teams must address this burnout crisis. This means reevaluating how they support their workforces — particularly when it comes to the benefits they provide, which can make all the difference in securing a healthier work-life balance for employees and reducing turnover.
Benefits in the healthcare sector must be responsive to employees’ needs and capable of providing the robust support and flexibility that will alleviate the burnout crisis. This means rethinking traditional benefits like paid time off (PTO) and giving employees a wider range of options in how they use these benefits.
Healthcare employees are in dire need of support
During the COVID pandemic, a new term entered our lexicon: frontline workers. While this term applied to many workers who weren’t able to stay home, it was especially applicable to healthcare workers who were directly exposed to sick patients, working extreme hours, and dealing with the psychological turmoil of a pandemic up close. Although life is back to normal for many workers, healthcare employees are still on the frontlines and need support.
According to the CDC, 46 percent of healthcare workers reported feeling burned out in 2022 — a proportion that shot up from 32 percent in 2018. This led to a significant uptick in healthcare workers seeking new jobs, from 33 percent in 2018 to 44 percent in 2022. The turnover rate among RNs increased dramatically during the pandemic — from just under 16 percent in 2019 to over 27 percent in 2021. While this rate has steadily declined since its peak, it was still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels last year: 18.4 percent. Over the past five years, the average hospital has turned over nearly 103 percent of its RN workforce.
A 2023 report found “high rates of burnout and intent to leave the job across healthcare roles.” Employees in the healthcare sector are clearly struggling, and HR teams must take action to give them the support they need.
How the right benefits can address healthcare burnout
Healthcare organizations have already experienced large-scale turnover over the past several years, and they could be facing even more retention issues in the near future. A recent survey conducted by the TIAA Institute found that over one-fifth of healthcare system employees are at risk of turnover within the next two years. It’s no wonder that two of the top three priorities for healthcare employees (along with salary) are benefits and work-life balance—these are crucial aspects of the fight against burnout.
Benefits and work-life balance are intimately connected — according to the TIAA survey, 83 percent of healthcare employees rank PTO as their top benefit, even outpaces retirement savings plans. Three-quarters of healthcare employees say stress and burnout are problems, and PTO can help them address them. However, PTO can also be a source of stress for employees. A recent report from Harris Poll found that 78 percent of American workers don’t use all their PTO. Two-thirds “dread the backlog of work” that accumulates when they take time off, while 63 percent say the pressure to meet deadlines deters them from using their PTO.
Conventional PTO programs are clearly not accomplishing the goal of helping employees improve their work-life balance. This is particularly harmful in the healthcare sector, as employee stress can lead to staffing shortages (a problem cited by 80 percent of healthcare employees) and diminished patient care. This is why it’s time for HR teams in the healthcare sector to explore new approaches to PTO.
How convertible PTO can better serve healthcare employees
PTO is widely underused, which doesn’t just mean employees aren’t getting the total value of their benefits — it also means companies are accruing significant and unnecessary financial liabilities. In many states, companies are required to pay the total value of unused PTO when an employee leaves. This can be particularly problematic for organizations in the healthcare sector, as they often have substantial overheads and extra financial burdens that can compromise patient care. High levels of turnover in healthcare exacerbate these issues.
Companies in states that don’t require PTO payouts face their own set of issues. According to research published by BNFT, three-quarters of employees say they have taken “unneeded” time off to avoid losing the PTO they’ve earned. PTO shouldn’t be a source of stress for employees, particularly when they already have high-stress jobs like those in the healthcare sector. This is why HR teams in the sector should consider innovative benefits like convertible PTO, which allows employees to direct the value of their unused time off toward other financial priorities like student loan payments, retirement contributions, and charitable donations.
Our research has found that convertible benefits would make employees 90 percent more likely to stay with their current companies — a huge advantage in the high-turnover healthcare field. In a more recent report, BNFT found that healthcare companies using convertible PTO have a 5.78 percent turnover rate — compared to nearly 14 percent for those that do not. One large hospital system faced $40 million in accrued PTO due to burnout and labor shortages. After implementing convertible PTO, employees exchanged $4.26 million worth of time off within the first eight weeks of the program.
As HR teams in the healthcare sector continue to face a burnout crisis and high levels of turnover, a new PTO strategy could help them get this crisis under control.
Download our ebook, "Retention Rx: The Power of Convertible PTO in Healthcare" to discover how PTO Conversion Programs are transforming retention and employee satisfaction in the healthcare industry.
Published on Dec 04, 2024 by Rob Whalen
