Nurse retention is a critical challenge in healthcare - with potentially severe consequences for patient safety and patient outcomes. High turnover rates among registered nurses (RNs) not only disrupt patient care but also create significant financial strain on hospitals. With the 2024 NSI National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report estimating that a 1% change in RN turnover costs hospitals an average of $262,500 annually, finding effective solutions is more urgent than ever.

For CommonSpirit Health (CSH), one of the largest nonprofit healthcare systems in the United States, this challenge was particularly pressing. With 145 hospitals and over 2,200 care sites spanning 24 states, CSH faced the need to unify and scale its training programs to better support new nurses and improve retention and staff engagement. The solution? A comprehensive, scalable Nurse Residency, Preceptor and Mentor Training program designed to address these issues head-on and enhance system-wide efficiencies.

The Challenge of Retaining Talent in a Complex System

Before embarking on this initiative, CSH relied on localized transition-to-practice (TTP) programs which lacked consistency and scalability due to limited resources in Learning and Organizational Development (L&OD).  This variation increased the administrative burden and led to uneven compliance with standards. As with many health systems facing the same challenge: each facility ran its own program differently, leading to varying levels of support and outcomes for new nurses.

With such a vast network of hospitals and care sites, a standardized approach was critical to ensure every nurse received the same level of training and support. Additionally, the financial and operational impact of turnover underscored the urgency of creating a program that would improve financial efficiency and streamline processes across the system.

Implementing a Scalable, Data-Driven Solution

To create a uniform and scalable training experience for new nurses, CSH partnered with OpusVi to develop a comprehensive Nurse Residency, Preceptor, and Mentor Training program. This collaboration aimed to standardize training across the entire health system, improving nurse recruitment, retention, job satisfaction and upskilling within the workforce.

OpusVi's solution offers evidence-based learning practices, high-impact content and curricula, seamless integration into hospital Learning Management Systems (LMS) and rich data collection in real-time. This program from OpusVi is delivered in a format that allows CSH to standardize excellence across the entire system by providing a scaled foundation for new nurses transitioning into practice. CSH provided subject matter experts, seasoned clinical educators and executive-level support, while OpusVi provided the framework, program delivery and infrastructure and rich data insights with real-time impact monitoring, delivering ROI for the system.

OpusVi’s Impact Dashboard provides unparalleled rich data to CSH leaders, enabling administrators with unique visibility into a nurse’s transition into practice in real-time. Leaders can identify and analyze areas of opportunity for the first time to reduce turnover and improve patient safety. The dashboard provides real-time access to key metrics, including nurse and preceptor stats, individual learner engagement reporting, early dropout detection alerts and ROI tracking. These data-driven insights also shed light on retention and staff engagement trends, facilitating targeted interventions to reduce turnover and enhance employee wellness. Users can scale data to analyze individual learners, specific hospitals, the entire organization or performance across different states, empowering informed decision-making at every level.

By implementing consistent training content across its entire system, CommonSpirit created a unified experience for all new nurses. The standardization not only improved training outcomes but also reinforced high reliability, reduced legal liability and promoted strong risk management practices across facilities – ensuring better alignment with compliance and standards.

Achieving Remarkable Outcomes

The implementation of this comprehensive training and mentorship program has yielded significant results:

• 92% Nurse Retention: In the first year post-implementation, nurse retention rates at CSH climbed to over 92%, a notable improvement from previous rates.
• $16.3M Annual Cost Savings: With the average cost of turnover for a bedside RN at $56,300, this residency program contributed to an estimated $16.3 million in annual turnover cost savings.
• Standardization Across the Board: By scaling evidence-based and standardized curricular content throughout the system, OpusVi helped ensure all nurses across CSH facilities received consistent, high-quality training, leading to high reliability, strong risk management practices and reduced legal liability.

The collaboration between CSH and OpusVi highlights the power of targeted, evidence-based and data-informed training programs in overcoming critical healthcare staffing challenges and enhancing the health of the community. These workforce development strategies have not only delivered transformative outcomes for CSH’s staff and the patients they serve but also achieved significant cost savings and operational efficiencies across the system.  Additionally, new nurses reported feeling more supported, confident and equipped to excel in their roles, which in turn boosted engagement and job satisfaction.

Scaling for the Future

The success of the initial implementation has set the stage for even greater impact. Over the next five years, OpusVi and CSH plan to develop training programs for four additional specialty areas per year. This expansion aims to reach over 45,000 nurses across 14 states and eight specialties, further reinforcing the impact of this collaboration on the healthcare industry and cementing OpusVi’s solutions as a cornerstone of CSH’s workforce development strategy.

The program’s success is a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation and a data-driven approach. Kathleen Sanford, Chief Nursing Officer of CommonSpirit Health, expressed pride in what the initiative has achieved, stating: “This program has been instrumental in bridging the gap between academic knowledge and real-world clinical practice, providing our new nurses with the support, confidence and skills they need to excel.”

Looking Ahead: A Model for Healthcare Transformation

CSH’s journey with OpusVi demonstrates how targeted, evidence-based, data-driven training programs can improve system-wide efficiencies while addressing critical challenges in healthcare staffing. These workforce development strategies have led to transformative outcomes for CSH staff, the patients they serve and the system's overall efficiency – setting a new standard for nurse training, retention and upskilling within the system.

For healthcare systems grappling with similar challenges, the results of this partnership offer a roadmap to meaningful change — one where improved training leads to stronger retention, enhanced patient outcomes and a healthier bottom line.

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