Consumer Directed Care and Employee Outcomes

Formal Title: Investigating the impact that consumer directed care has on employee career intentions, organisational commitment, retention and turnover.
Method: Qualitative study
Investigators:  Griffith University - Katrina Radford (Principal Investigator) Bolton Clarke - Rajna Ogrin (Associate Investigator)
Duration: 2016 – 2018
Status: Data collection underway.

Background:
Retention and turnover research has generated much interest over the years, particularly in the aged care setting. This is because the ageing population demands a qualified workforce to provide the health care services needed both now and into the future. However, aged care organisations often struggle to attract and retain qualified staff and as such, much work has been conducted to explore the factors that impact attraction and retention to the aged care sector. This study builds on this work, but investigates the impact that consumer directed care has on employee career outcomes, employee retention, and organisational commitment.

Aims:
This study aims to review the impact that the move to consumer led services in community care has on employee outcomes.

Research Question: How do employees’ perceptions of their career, organisational commitment, intentions to stay and leave change as funding policies change to CDC?

Methods:
Qualitative design using an ethnographic approach, including 20-30 participants in pre and post- CDC implementation using semi-structured interviews.Case managers, front line workers and higher level managers who work at Bolton Clarke, and frontline staff from agencies from whom Bolton Clarke brokers care will be invited to participate in the study.

Expected benefits of research:
The findings from the research will provide organisations with a better understanding of the factors that influence employees’ intentions to leave and stay. This information can then be used by organisations to enhance workforce attraction and retention strategies.