Dignity Health Global Education Launches New Nurse Residency Program to Help Increase RN Retention by 20% or Higher

Nurses are a crucial part of the healthcare industry, comprising the largest group of healthcare professionals. Yet the current state of the nursing workforce is critical. According to the 2022 NSI National Healthcare Retention Report, there is a 17% RN vacancy rate, while the turnover rate for first-year nurses is 31.7%.¹ The turnover cost for a single staff RN has been increasing each year — with an average of $52,250 USD in 2022, compared to $46,100 USD in 2021.²

According to the 2023 NSI National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report, each RN turnover percent change can cost or save the average hospital $380,600 USD per year.² In 2022, to recruit an experienced RN it took at least 2 to 4 months; the RN Recruitment Difficult Index ranges from 61 to 120 days.² These challenges have major implications for healthcare systems’ efficiencies, revenue, and staffing practices

To address this issue, DHGE has designed an innovative Nurse Residency program, developed in partnership with CSH nurse educators led by Connie Clemmons Brown, DNP, RN, system SVP, Patient Care Services, to accommodate health organizations in transitioning nurses to practice. DHGE’s centralized platform provides a complete technology infrastructure that is easy to scale and can be tailored to each organization’s unique needs.

This 12-month Nurse Residency program, delivering at scale across 21 different states, is a cost-effective solution for organizations that are looking to improve their nurse retention, increase role satisfaction and well-being of their nursing workforce, and decrease new nurse attrition rates. With DHGE’s support system and high-quality training, employers can ensure nurses’ satisfaction with their job and empower them to make positive outcomes for both healthcare organizations and their patients.

DHGE’s Nurse Residency, training both preceptors and residents, aims to increase nurse retention rates and save costs for healthcare organizations. Through a clear developmental pathway built upon digital badges, residents get an evidence-based education that boosts their skills. Participating healthcare organizations will get full support from the DHGE’s highly-trained program support specialists, instructional designers, and technologists who will provide a tailored step-by-step implementation. Decision makers will be able to predict retention rates and measure the true effectiveness of the program through our reporting, deep insights, and real-time data.

“In 2021, average costs associated with RN turnover were $3.6M to $6.5M USD³,” said Kathy Sanford, CNO, CommonSpirit Health. “This has a huge implication for a hospital’s profit margins and calls for solutions that can fundamentally address nurses’ satisfaction. With DHGE’s high-quality Nurse Residency program, hospitals can equip their nursing workforce with evidence-based clinical practices to face everyday situations, thus helping to increase nurses’ satisfaction. Our goal with this program is to increase RN retention at CSH by 20% or higher, delivering tremendous savings in hiring and retention costs for our healthcare system.”

“The healthcare industry at-large is profoundly aware of the current critical state of the nursing workforce,” said Kurt Hayes, Chief Product Officer, DHGE. “We all need to do whatever we can to help alleviate the severe shortages, including improving retention, while helping nurses stay competent and confident in their roles. DHGE is proud to offer this innovative Nurse Residency program which aims to make a significant impact in nurse retention while simultaneously lowering hiring and retention costs for system partners, saving hospitals millions of dollars, which will ultimately result in better patient outcomes.”