Nurses Retention and Recruiting Strategies Matrix

Type of retention strategy	Benefits of using this strategy	Challenges of using this strategy	Evidence-based reference
Nova Scotia’s Nursing Retention Strategy	With the implementation of the strategy, approximately eighty-five million dollars were was invested in retaining and recruiting more nurses in an operating room. The benefit of the strategy was the ability to increase the number of nurses by 2,000. Such a result was accomplished through the increase of undergraduates at universities. The second benefit of the strategy was the expansion of the number of nurse practitioners since they are one of the most important members of emergency departments.	The strategy was challenged by the recruitment of nurses from rural areas. The second challenge was connected with different barriers that did not allow for nurses to practice within the most effective scopes. The third challenge is addressing the constraints exhibited by the non-nursing practices that still occupy a large portion of nurses’ practice in both emergency and operational environments.	Nova Scotia’s Nursing Retention Strategy collaborated with the professionals from the Dalhousie University/World Health Organization in order to conduct an analysis of the recruitment and retention (Nova Scotia’s Nursing Strategy, 2015, p. 6). The results found that the existing nursing resources were not enough for nurses to stay in hospitals. Thus, effective steps were necessary in order to attract more professionals to the job and sustain the already working professionals in their positions.
Internships and Preceptorships	The benefits of this strategy are linked to showing graduate nurses how the professional life of experienced nurses in emergency and operating room settings occurs.	The primary challenge of the strategy is finding additional funds to pay graduate nurses in the course of their internship since they worked almost as many hours as already trained professionals.	According to the study conducted by McDonald & Ward-Smith (2012), preceptorships and internships were effective in increasing the retention rates in hospitals by approximately 40% (p. 17).
Nursing Turnover Management	One of the primary benefits of the strategy is its ability to sustain already lacking and scarce resources within the nursing environment. Furthermore, the strategy is effective for addressing the style of management that contributed to nurses’ intentions to quit their job, thus lowering the retention rates.	The challenges of the study are linked to the limitations existing in the managerial environment. Building an effective environment that enables nurses to make their own decisions in professional life is a goal that cannot be easily achieved.	According to the study conducted by Van den Heede et al. (2013), the lack of resources in hospital environments greatly contributes to nurses’ willingness to leave hospitals (p. 192).
Collaborative Nurse-Physician Strategy	Strategies that involve tight cooperation between nurses and physicians are beneficial since they entail nurses and physicians cooperating in the process of education and professional development. They are beneficial for establishing trust and respect between nurses and physicians, thus creating a comfortable and effective environment for medical practice. Since a supportive environment for work is one of the main contributors to nurses’ retention, the strategy is effective for maintaining and further increasing the retention rates for nurses that work in emergency rooms or operating rooms.	Bringing professionals together always entail a conflict. The main challenge of the strategy is to resolve conflicts that may arise between nurses and physicians. Competition between professionals can also cause tension in the workplace; thus, to address this challenge, it should be addressed by the hospital’s management. The third challenge is linked to the incompatibility of the duties of nurses and physicians. Thus, their cooperation, in some cases, might create some tension and misunderstanding in the working process.	According to the study conducted by Twigg & McCullough (2014), collaborative relationships and effective communication are some of the primary contributors to nurse retention (p. 89). Furthermore, building respect among medical professionals will increase job satisfaction, which, in turn, will attract more nurses into hospitals and increase retention in the rates of already working professionals.
Schedule Flexibility and Positive Environment Strategy	Keeping nurse practitioners in their profession is crucial for improving the satisfaction with the job and thus, reduce the desire to quit. The strategy targeted at increasing the flexibility of the schedule as well as improving the environment for professional work is beneficial for making nurse practitioners working in emergency rooms or ORs satisfied with their surroundings and reduced the instances of leaves.	The primary challenge of the strategy is meeting the needs of nurses without sacrificing the quality and of health care services the facility provides. If the schedule is too flexible, there may not be enough professionals to assist an operation or to admit patients into the emergency room. The second challenge relates to finding resources for improving the professional environment to increase job satisfaction. It is important to remember that the majority of healthcare funds go towards patients.	The study conducted by Leineweber et al. (2016), particular measures targeted at improving the schedule flexibility for practicing nurses, is an approach that promises to increase retention of nurses within the nursing profession in general as well as in their workplace specifically.

References

Leineweber, C., Chungkham, H., Lindqvist, R., Westerlund, H., Runesdotter, S., Alenius, L., & Tishelman, C. (2016). Nurses’ practice environment and satisfaction with schedule flexibility is related to intention to leave due to dissatisfaction: A multi-country, multilevel study. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 58, 47-58.

McDonald, A., & Ward-Smith, P. (2012). A review of evidence-based strategies to retain graduate nurses in the profession. Journal for Nurses in Staff Development, 28(1), 16-20.

Nova Scotia’s Nursing Strategy. (2015). Web.

Twigg, D., & McCullough, K. (2014). Nurse retention: A review of strategies to create and enhance positive practice environments in clinical settings. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 51(1), 85-92.

Van den Heede, K., Florquin, M., Bruyneel, L., Aiken, L., Diya, L., Lesaffre, E., & Sermeus, W. (2013). Effective strategies for nurse retention in acute hospitals: A mixed method study. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 50(2), 185-194.