40% of nurses quit

[MotherBear]

40pc of general ward nurses quit each year
5:00AM Monday June 25, 2007
By Errol Kiong

Forty per cent of staff nurses in New Zealand hospital general wards leave their jobs each year, costing hospitals an average of nearly $25,000 to replace each one.

The study by Auckland University on nurse turnover at the country's public hospitals also found that hospital wards employ two nurses fewer, on average, than budgeted.

Turnover rates were slightly higher in regional hospitals than urban areas (39.6 per cent to 38.8 per cent) and in surgical wards than medical wards (41 per cent to 36.7 per cent). Each hospital spends about $20,000 per leaving nurse on temporary cover costs and overtime, and up to $5300 per replacement nurse in advertising and training costs.

More here .