The Retention Direct Support Programme (RDSP), a national-level intervention aimed toward increasing nurse retention in NHS hospital providers, has demonstrated remarkable success by reducing the nurse turnover rate by 4.5%, which ultimately contributed to the prevention of 11,400 deaths, in keeping with a study led by the University of Surrey.
The study examined the impact of the RDSP, which provided NHS hospitals with data and guidelines to boost the non-monetary facets of nursing jobs – akin to giving nurses more flexibility at work, bringing clarity to a hospital’s mission and providing more training and skilled development.
The findings indicated a considerable decrease within the nurse turnover rate by 4.49%, leading to a 5.38% decrease in nurse exits from the general public hospital sector. Remarkably, this system also contributed to a 3.45% reduction in mortality rates, which is comparable to stopping 11,400 deaths.
Dr Giuseppe Moscelli, lead investigator of the study and Associate Professor of Economics on the University of Surrey, said:
“Excessive turnover in organizations can have a detrimental impact on performance, and the general public hospital sector isn’t any exception. Nevertheless, Surrey’s recent study, using high-quality administrative data, has revealed a promising solution.
“Our findings also suggests that the impact of the RDSP on managerial behavior played a vital role in its success – with middle managers possibly being the essential actors in curbing worker turnover.
“Furthermore, the RDSP had a positive impact on hospital quality, particularly in disease-specific areas where the UK NHS historically performed poorly, akin to respiratory conditions and maternity services.”
The RDSP launched in July 2017, by NHS Improvement (NHSI), which is a governing body accountable for overseeing the NHS Trusts. This system was rolled out in five cohorts at different times, and Trusts were allocated to cohorts based on their past turnover rates and trends. This system required Trusts to give you their very own retention strategies in an motion plan, which was agreed upon with NHSI. NSHI then monitored each Trusts’ progress within the 12 months following the beginning and provided targeted support where needed.
The research also make clear the trade-off between centralization and decentralization within the management of public organizations. Preserving a certain level of centralization, when it comes to disseminating information and providing guidance on best practices, appeared to assist decentralized units overcome information irregularities and improve outcomes.
The success of the RDSP was attributed to its ability to bridge information gaps and disseminate best practices at a corporation level. This offers us hope that the challenges of nurse retention and hospital quality in the general public sector will be met. We hope that future policymakers and hospital administrators can use these research findings to tell and design more practical strategies to enhance workforce retention and patient outcomes.”
Professor Jo Blanden, co-author of the study and researcher, University of Surrey
This study has been published as an IZA working paper.