One in Four Healthcare Workers Want to Quit: Bain

A recent survey shows that one in four U.S. medical care workers are considering switching careers, primarily due to burnout.

According to Bain & Company’s recent U.S. Frontline of Healthcare survey, around a third of clinicians are considering switching employers, while a quarter is considering changing careers altogether.

Of those considering leaving the medical field, 89% of respondents cited burnout as a leading cause. Respondents cited personal health and safety as the second leading case at 41%.

Source: Bain & Company

The survey also found that nearly 40% of clinicians say they need more resources to operate at their full potential. They reported a lack of effective workflows, supplies, and equipment. 

And 59% of respondents say their teams are not adequately staffed.

What Healthcare Organizations Can Do

So what can employers do to improve clinicians’ job satisfaction and retention?

According to Bain, the message from clinicians is clear. Healthcare workers want better compensation, more support to deliver high-quality patient care, and a more manageable workload. 

Rounding out the five most important criteria for physicians, advanced practice providers, and nurses were flexible work arrangements and more clinically focused job responsibilities.

Bain found that nearly 40% of clinicians are dissatisfied with their employers across most of these dimensions.

Turnover among hospital-based staff is the highest, increasing 6.4% over the past year, according to Nursing Solutions’ National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report. 

“Providers have long focused on delivering high-quality care for their patients. Now, the imperative is clear: They need to ensure this high-quality care extends to their clinicians and employees,” Bain said in its report.

Read more about Bain’s findings on short-term and long-term ways to mitigate clinician burnout in “A Treatment for America’s Healthcare Worker Burnout.”

Bain & Company conducted its U.S. Frontline of Healthcare Survey in July 2022 with 573 clinicians.