Healthcare is a stressful field at the best of times, but over the past few years, healthcare leaders have faced increased pressure, resulting in higher rates of leadership burnout and turnover.
A new study found that almost half of healthcare leaders plan to leave their organizations within the next year, while 26% said they plan to do so even sooner. An even greater number — 76% — said they had received a job offer within the last six months.
This is a crisis for healthcare organizations. Constant executive turnover can lead to disruptions in organizational continuity and negatively impact business performance, while forcing organizations to undertake sometimes-lengthy executive searches. It’s not an ideal situation. Can Learning and Development (L&D) play a role in keeping executives in their positions?
Why is there so much leadership turnover in healthcare?
When we hear about healthcare burnout, it’s primarily focused on the stress and staffing shortages that affect providers like doctors and nurses. We don’t often hear about the stress that affects CEOs and hospital leadership — but it’s there. The average hospital CEO remains in their job for about six years — even fewer in rural hospitals.
The reason? Pressure. While all CEOs and leadership roles are used to a certain amount of stress, the healthcare industry is dealing with a significant number of challenges right now. Hospital budgets are under strain, thanks to inflation, insurance, and rising labor costs. Burnout among healthcare providers has led to staffing shortages and increased turnover. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting healthcare organizations, leading to data breaches and interruptions of service. On top of all this, the lingering effects of the pandemic can still be felt.
This cocktail of stress has taken its toll. According to a recent study, 74% of healthcare leaders say they felt burned out within the past six months, and 93% of those executives worried their burnout was negatively impacting their organizations.
Burned-out executives are more likely to leave their jobs or the healthcare industry itself.
How can L&D help improve employee retention in healthcare?
Learning can absolutely improve employee retention in healthcare. However, to do that, learning should be tightly focused on solving specific issues. In this case, L&D has to address two major problems that contribute to high turnover: succession planning and executive stress.
Strengthening retention with internal leadership development
Succession planning is an important step in planning for an organization’s future, but it’s not one of the healthcare industry’s strong points. Only 34% of healthcare organizations say they have a formal succession plan for leadership, and in many cases, there aren’t strong internal candidates ready to take over when a CEO resigns.
However, growing internal talent can help healthcare organizations navigate such scenarios with greater confidence. When a healthcare employer prepares internal candidates to step into leadership positions, those organizations benefit from smoother transitions, reduced onboarding time, and leaders who are already aligned with the mission, values, and culture.
This is a place where L&D can step into the breach. Rather than waiting for leadership gaps to emerge, organizations can use insights from L&D to identify high-potential employees early. Once those employees are discovered, L&D can guide their growth through structured, continuous learning and development programs.
These initiatives may include targeted training in financial management, strategic thinking, and healthcare operations; skills essential for executive roles but often underdeveloped in clinical leaders. By cultivating this internal talent pool, healthcare organizations not only reduce the risk and costs associated with employee turnover but also build employee satisfaction by showing a clear path to advancement.
A critical component of succession planning and leadership development is mentoring. Pairing emerging leaders with experienced executives allows for the kind of institutional memory that external hires often lack.
By creating tailored leadership training plans tied to both individual goals and organizational needs, L&D can help future leaders build their confidence and capacity at a sustainable pace. In this case, L&D becomes a strategic tool not just for leadership and employee retention, but for long-term organizational resilience.
How to prevent executive burnout?
Preparation is important, but it’s equally critical to support executives when they are actually serving in their leadership roles. Healthcare leadership can be isolating, especially when executives are navigating high-stakes decisions, complex regulations, and constant change.
L&D can help reduce leadership burnout within the healthcare industry by creating peer learning cohorts or cross-functional leadership forums. These communities create spaces for leaders to exchange ideas, share experiences, and connect, all while encouraging stronger collaboration across departments. In healthcare, that kind of seamless teamwork directly impacts patient outcomes.
For top executives, some organizations may consider expanding the C-suite to reduce isolation and pressure on the CEO, thus creating a C-level learning forum.
Another important step in building resilience is shifting from one-off leadership seminars to ongoing development and executive coaching. Continuous learning not only keeps leaders sharp but also signals that the organization is invested in their long-term success. Leadership roundtables, monthly development sessions, and personalized coaching help executives tackle current challenges while preparing for future ones.
When learning is embedded in the culture — accessible, relevant, and supported at every level — leaders are more likely to stay engaged, feel supported, and grow within the organization rather than seeking opportunities elsewhere. In this way, a culture of learning becomes a retention strategy, a resilience-builder, and a competitive advantage all at once.
Building an L&D strategy to help your healthcare leadership thrive
When strong, stable leadership is a constant, organizations thrive. But the opposite is also true: a high turnover of executives, coupled with gaps in succession planning and employee burnout, threatens continuity and stability across an entire healthcare system.
L&D is well-positioned to help the healthcare industry grow and keep effective leadership. By building clear leadership pathways, investing in skill development, and fostering a culture of continuous learning, healthcare organizations can strengthen their leadership pipeline from within. When leaders feel prepared, supported, and valued, they’re far more likely to stay — and flourish.
To build a strong and engaged leadership team, L&D should focus on developing high-potential employees through training and mentorship, while also creating learning communities that support current leaders. Learn more about how Litmos Healthcare LMS platform can specifically support these efforts and keep healthcare leaders aligned with the latest training and compliance requirements. Reach out to the Litmos team to see how we can help your healthcare organization reach its L&D goals.
1 Comment
dma9os