MDNews - Minnesota

MAKE A REFERRAL Children's Mental Health Clinic • Child & Family Therapy • Evaluation & Assessment • Day Treatment & Autism Services Mental health, speech & occupational therapy, autism services and preschool— under one roof! stdavidscenter.org | 952.548.8700 Immediate openings for many services! We've grown to give more children a great start! DAVID A. FRENZ, MD, a Minneapolis- area physician, drew on ex tensive data a bout re cr u it ment a nd onboa rd i n g outlays, as well as lost revenue caused by vacancies, to estimate the tota l cost of turnover for one hospita list. Writing in Today's Hospitalist, where he is a Contributing Editor, Dr. Frenz put the ra nge at $400,000 to, in some ca ses, more than $600,000. Factoring in travel a nd lodging for candidates, as well as lost productivity a mong existing sta f f who meet with prospective physicians, the interview process involved in filling a single position costs on average more than $31,000, he notes, citing numbers from Cejka Search. The training, credentia ling, onboard- i n g a nd ma rket i n g of a newly h i red physician tack on $200,000 to $300,000, Dr. Frenz adds. For a hospita list who resigns or retires, lost revenue comes to at least $39,000 — a figure that can be far higher in a number of other specia lties. There are a lso potentia lly enormous costs if other providers cannot absorb the ex tra work in the mea ntime: " The whole thing explodes if you need to offer premium pay, bring in locum tenens hospita lists or reduce your census," Dr. Frenz writes. Turnover costs, he concludes, are "yet another reason to hire well and retain providers for years." ■ Turnover Turmoil BY STEVE BARRETT HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATORS REALIZE PHYSICIAN TURNOVER EX ACTS A PAINFUL TOLL ON HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATIONS. AT TACHING DOLL AR FIGURES TO THAT GENERAL AWARENESS MAKES IT ALL THE MORE BRACING. 1 6T H E L I N K

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