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Turnover among Community Mental Health Workers in Ohio

Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research volume 44, pages 115–122 (2017)Cite this article

Abstract

This study examined turnover of community mental health workers in 42 randomly selected mental health agencies in Ohio. The turnover rate in 2011 was 26 %. A regression analysis indicated that agencies with lower turnover offered higher maximum pay and were smaller in size, while those offering career advancement opportunities, such as career ladder programs, had higher turnover. The findings suggest that improving wages for workers is likely to reduce turnover. It is also possible that smaller agencies have lower turnover due to stronger relationships with workers and/or more successful hiring practices. Furthermore, turnover that occurs as a result of career advancement could have positive effects and should be examined separate from other types of turnover in the future.

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Acknowledgments

This work is made possible through a sub-grant from The Ohio Department of Medicaid to the Ohio Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center (GRC). Funding to support this initiative comes from the Federal Money Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration Grant from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to The Ohio Department of Medicaid. The project team would also like to thank Dr. Kathryn Judge at Cleveland State University and Dr. James Jones at Ball State University for their contributions.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Margaret Blenkner Research Institute, Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Ashley M. Bukach & Farida K. Ejaz

  2. Margaret Blenkner Research Institute, Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Nicole Dawson

  3. Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, OH, USA

    Robert J. Gitter

Authors
  1. Ashley M. Bukach
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  2. Farida K. Ejaz
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  3. Nicole Dawson
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  4. Robert J. Gitter
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ashley M. Bukach.

Appendix 1. Questions Used to Compute Turnover

Appendix 1. Questions Used to Compute Turnover

Denominator

How many CPST workers were on payroll in your mental health agency on January 1, 2011?

Numerator

How many of the CPST workers that were on your payroll on January 1, 2011 turned over in your mental health agency from January 1 to December 31, 2011?

Reminder

This number includes CPST workers who left your mental health agency voluntarily or involuntarily (were terminated or fired), as well as CPST workers who moved laterally to a different position or were promoted to another position in your mental health agency or organization.

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Bukach, A.M., Ejaz, F.K., Dawson, N. et al. Turnover among Community Mental Health Workers in Ohio. Adm Policy Ment Health 44, 115–122 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-015-0706-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-015-0706-1

Keywords

  • Turnover
  • Retention
  • Community mental health workers

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