The High Cost of Bye-Bye
Why Medical Turnover Is Bleeding Your Clinic Dry
Welcome to the wonderful world of employee turnover. That magical phenomenon where your favorite clinician vanishes one day and HR says something vague like “They’ve moved on to new opportunities” (translation: “We ran them into the ground, and now they’re free.”)
Let’s talk specifically about the cost of losing medical providers: doctors, PAs, NPs. You know, the people literally keeping your patients alive and your reputation intact.
Spoiler: it’s expensive as f$&k!
Like, buy-a-Tesla-for-every-departing-employee expensive.
Like, maybe-we-should-have-just-treated-them-like-humans expensive.
So, How Much Does It Actually Cost?
According to a 2016 study in Annals of Family Medicine, replacing a single primary care physician costs anywhere from $500,000 to over $1 million when you factor in recruitment, onboarding, lost productivity, and reduced patient access during the gap.
Let me say that again in case you're skimming:
One. Million. Dollars.
That’s not including the brain drain, broken patient continuity, and general aura of despair that settles over the break room like stale coffee fumes.
Need more numbers?
The average cost of turnover for nurse practitioners and physician assistants is roughly $250,000–$300,000 per provider (AMGA 2018 Workforce Survey).
Hospitals in the U.S. spend an estimated $4.4 to $6.9 million per year due to physician turnover alone (Physician Retention Survey, AAMC).
Turnover increases patient morbidity and mortality. A 2018 BMJ study found higher death rates in hospitals with high staff turnover. So yes, not only is it expensive…it’s literally killing people.
But Wait, There’s Moral Injury Too!
Let’s not pretend this is just about money.
Turnover is a symptom, not the disease. The real problem is toxic workplace culture, horrendous leadership, moral injury, and burnout wrapped in buzzwords like “resilience training” and “provider wellness initiatives” (aka: lunch yoga and pizza parties, instead of livable workloads).
When providers leave, it's not because they “didn't fit” or “couldn’t handle the pace.” It’s because:
They were expected to see 25–30 patients a day while also solving healthcare inequality.
They got 7 minutes for complex patients and 14 meetings about productivity.
Their EMR inbox had 4,372 unread messages and they had to chart in the parking lot at 9 p.m. because “we’re short-staffed again.”
They dared to express a boundary and were told to “lean in.”
Turnover reflects a system where the people who care are crushed, and the people who manage are baffled why people keep quitting.
What Happens to the Ones Who Stay?
Oh, they feel it.
The culture shifts. Morale nosedives. Everyone’s doing more with less, and the unofficial motto becomes:
“Caffeinate. Survive until Friday. 2 glasses of Cabernet. Repeat.”
Trust erodes. New hires come in, wide-eyed and eager, and the veterans take bets on how long they’ll last. “She brought a plant to her desk,” someone whispers. “Poor thing.”
Patients notice too. Their favorite provider is suddenly gone. They’re shuffled between locums or new hires with no time to build rapport. Continuity dies, and patient satisfaction? That goes the way of your last star employee.
So, What Can We Do Instead of Bleeding Cash and Souls?
Pay attention before they give notice.
Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. Regular check-ins, anonymous feedback tools, and actually listening (wild, I know) can save you a fortune.Address workload and admin bloat.
Providers want to practice medicine, not play EMR Tetris or spend an hour coding for billable units.Stop glamorizing overwork.
Being the “first in, last out” is not noble. It’s unsustainable. Protect time for rest, creativity, connection. Humans are not productivity bots.Create psychological safety.
If people are afraid to speak up or fear retaliation, they’ll just leave. And the ones who stay will become quiet, tired, and dead-eyed in meetings.Rethink leadership.
Promote people who lead with humility, compassion, and actual vision—not just the ones who meet metrics and use "synergy" unironically.
In Conclusion: Turnover Isn’t Just Financial Loss, It’s A Culture Bleed
Every time a provider walks out the door, your institution loses money, continuity, trust, morale, and maybe even its soul.
Yes, recruitment is important. But retention?
That’s where the magic is. Or at least where the hemorrhaging stops.
Because your best providers? They don’t leave for money.
They leave when it becomes clear they’re not seen, heard, or valued.
And if your organization can’t offer those three things...
Well, there’s always another job posting. And another million-dollar mistake.
Sources:
Sinsky, C., et al. (2016). Annals of Family Medicine, 14(6), 573-576.
AAMC 2020. Physician Retention and Turnover Survey.
BMJ 2018;363:k4433. High turnover and mortality in hospitals.
AMGA Medical Group Compensation and Productivity Survey, 2018.