Healthcare worker retention conversations often begin with staffing, schedules, and pay. They should. But picture a nurse finishing a long shift and looking at a grocery pickup, a package return, and household paperwork still waiting at home. That moment raises a practical question for leaders: what happens to the time between shifts?
It is a question worth asking staff directly. Everyday support should be shaped around what people say they need, with its purpose and limits clear from the beginning.
What the workforce numbers tell leaders
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) reported that in its 2024 study, 39.9% of RNs and 41.3% of LPN/VNs said they intend to leave the workforce or retire within the next five years. Among those planning to leave for reasons other than retirement, about 41.5% pointed to stress and burnout as the root cause, followed by workload, understaffing, and inadequate salary.
These are reported intentions across the nursing workforce, not a forecast of resignations at a particular hospital. The figures include retirement and should not be read as a count of departures that practical support could prevent.
There is also progress. NCSBN found that 35.4% of RNs reported feeling burned out every day or a few times a week in 2024, down from 45.2% in 2022.
Turnover is expensive too. The 2026 NSI National Health Care Retention and RN Staffing Report puts the average cost of turnover for one bedside RN at $60,090.
This is a survey benchmark, not a calculation of a particular facility’s costs or a claim about HOP savings. Together, these findings explain why workforce support deserves serious attention. They do not establish that errand support improves retention.
What remains on the list after the shift
Work does not pause the rest of a person’s life. A pickup may be available only during hours someone is on duty. Groceries and household administration can wait until a day off, leaving less room for the way that person wants to spend it.
These are examples, not a description of every healthcare worker. Some staff may want practical help. Others may name different priorities. Listening comes before choosing a solution.
For leaders, a useful opening question is: “Which everyday task would you most like help with?” Follow it with: “When would that help be easiest to use?” The answers can reveal what a generic benefit description misses.
For a related perspective, read The Shift Ends. The List Doesn’t.
Where practical support could fit
HOP is developing practical support for healthcare teams through on site hospitality and virtual requests. The proposed model includes an approachable HOP Desk, help with agreed errands and pickups, and planning support. Virtual service could include home delivery of completed errands, within an approved scope and available capacity.
We call this Radical Hospitality: listening to the person, understanding the task, and designing a thoughtful way to help.
For an organization, the first question is whether staff find that support useful and accessible. The model should be clear about eligibility, hours, included tasks, handoffs, and what happens when a request cannot be fulfilled.
It also needs a clear boundary. Help with everyday tasks cannot address unsafe assignments, inadequate staffing, or compensation concerns. Those require their own attention. Practical support can be explored alongside that work, with no promise that it changes workforce outcomes.
Read Why Some Hospitals Are Looking at Practical Support as a Staff Benefit for the broader benefit discussion.
Questions for a retention discussion
A focused pilot can test a manageable service scope before an organization considers expansion. Start with questions that staff and leaders can answer:
- What task do staff want help with, and who would be eligible?
- Can the included shifts access the support during useful hours?
- Is requesting help simple, and are accepted tasks completed reliably?
- Do participants describe the support as useful?
- What information is necessary, who sees it, and how is participation kept separate from performance evaluation?
Define the evaluation before starting. HOP could track service activity, while the organization would control its outcome data. Participation should be voluntary and designed without patient information.
A small pilot may reveal service problems and useful feedback. It cannot on its own establish that HOP caused a retention change, especially if staffing, scheduling, or other benefits changed at the same time. CFOs and workforce leaders should assess any financial case using their own costs and a clearly stated set of assumptions.
A practical next conversation
The hours after a shift belong in the conversation about staff experience. Whether practical support belongs in your program should follow staff input and a realistic evaluation.
Related reading: The Hidden Cost of Nurse Burnout and the Support Gap Outside the Unit.
If you are a nursing, HR, finance, or wellbeing leader, write to info@hopserves.com to explore a proposed pilot with one unit and an agreed service scope. Tell us the everyday task your staff would most like help with and the shifts the pilot would need to serve.
We can begin with that question and work toward a clear proposal.