Description/Overview: Ongoing instability of the nursing workforce is a global issue that is impacted by many factors. Concerns have been expressed about the shortage of nurses and the issue of turnover. High nurse turnover may have detrimental effects on quality of care when nurses are overworked, there are vacant positions and patient symptoms are missed. Unfavorable nurse and patient outcomes translate into cost to the system, yet data to support effective policies is lacking. In this symposium, presenters will report on a pan-Canadian study focusing on nursing turnover. This research provides new evidence about the incidence of nurse turnover and its predictors, and impact on patient and nurse outcomes and associated system costs. Presenter 1 will introduce the research project, describing the study aims and its relevance within the current HHR context, the theoretical framework, specific research questions that were addressed, and overall research design. Presenter 2 will describe the data collection involving nurses and patients and administrative records, the complex statistical analysis methods and report the overall findings. Presenter 3 will highlight key findings that are of particular relevance to health care policy, discuss main messages that emerged from the study and offer recommendations to consider as decision-makers seek feasible, effective solutions within their healthcare organizations. This study provides evidence to increase our knowledge about the incidence and intensity of nurse turnover, and its costs. It advances understanding of the correlates and impact of turnover which will assist policy makers to design mechanisms and policies to effectively recruit and retain nurses as the market competition increases due to shortages of nurses in Canada and other countries. Given the prevalence of nursing workforce concerns and interest in the topic area, the presenters anticipate the symposium will stimulate excellent discussion amongst conference attendees.

Learner Objective #1: The learner will be able to describe factors that contribute to nurse turnover and the impact it has on nurses, patients and the system.

Learner Objective #2: The learner will be able to use evidence to discuss recommendations for new policy and practices to address nurse turnover in healthcare organizations.