Employee Turnover and Organisational Performance: Evidence from Private Hospitals in Ogun State

This study examines the relationship between employee turnover rates and organisational performance in private hospitals in Ogun State, Nigeria's South West geopolitical zone. High staff turnover in private healthcare institutions disrupts patient care continuity, increases recruitment and training costs, and erodes the institutional knowledge base critical to clinical excellence. This research employs a survey research design with data collected from 115 hospital administrators, department heads, and clinical supervisors across ten private hospitals in Abeokuta and Sagamu. Structured questionnaires and secondary turnover records were used as data sources, with analysis performed using descriptive statistics and regression. The study evaluates the impact of turnover rates on performance indicators including patient satisfaction scores, medical error rates, operational costs, and clinical staff productivity. Results indicate that hospitals with above-average annual turnover rates consistently underperform across all measured performance dimensions. The most cited drivers of voluntary turnover include poor remuneration relative to public hospitals, limited career development opportunities, and inadequate work environment infrastructure. The study also finds that retention of experienced nursing staff has the strongest individual impact on patient care quality metrics. Recommendations include targeted retention packages for critical clinical roles, structured career ladders, and improved healthcare worker welfare programmes. Keywords: employee turnover, organisational performance, private hospitals, Ogun State, healthcare management.