As nursing professional development (NPD) becomes a role increasingly valued by health systems, unique positions are emerging, such as Debbie Rimmele, BSN, RN, OCN, CPC’s nurse retention specialist role. In this position, Rimmele develops and leads programs to engage nurses with the organization—her main focus is nursing retention and working with nurses who may be contemplating leaving the organization. By developing relationships with nurses and nursing leaders at Loyola Medicine, she facilitates collaborative work to understand potential gaps in hiring, onboarding, or education. This role helps resolve these issues and addresses the concerns of the nursing teams.

In her time in the role, Rimmele has helped retain many nurses. In the 16 months since they have collected retention data, they have had 146 nurses at risk of leaving. Of these, 41 completed a formal meeting with executive directors, managers, certified nurse leaders, the new grad nurse residency director, and Rimmele to discuss ways to retain the employee. Of these 146 nurses, 67 have been retained and their overall retention numbers have increased.

Read on for our conversation with Rimmele about this unique role.

ANPD: Can you describe your role?

Debbie Rimmele, BSN, RN, OCN, CPC (DR): This is a new role my manager created two years ago. I have always been passionate about the profession of nursing and discovering how to improve it. Especially since COVID, retention has been a challenge, and this role was created to gain a better understanding of why nurses are leaving the profession and the bedside. I work in the Center for Professional Practice and Development, and I’m grateful for this, as I can continue working alongside other nurses in my role retaining both new grad nurses and experienced nurses.

My day-to-day is always different. In building relationships with unit leaders, preceptors, and new grad nurses, I focus on nurses at risk of leaving the organization. After receiving emails or a phone call asking if I can help, I reach out to the employee to explain my role and ask if the employee is willing to meet. Many have already met me through the classes that I teach, during which I share my role as a resource for them. I share if they are struggling with their unit leadership, preceptor, unit, or possibly bullying—then I am here to help.

The first time I meet with a nurse at risk of leaving, the meeting is at least an hour long. It’s a lot of listening, identifying challenges, and coaching. My goal is to keep them on their current unit and work through their struggles—which can look like building a relationship with their manager or preceptor. From there, I work with the nurse and bolster their engagement. If someone is interested in a different unit, I encourage them to shadow it, which allows them a first-hand opportunity to understand if the other unit is a better fit for them. Sometimes it is, although at other times, transitioning to a new unit may not be a good fit. I also provide resources for wellness and encourage them to have open dialogue with unit leadership about their concerns. I am often a personal and/or career coach.

ANPD: Who within the organization do you collaborate with most? Who are the key people who influence your role and decisions made in your role?

DR: I am that key connector for a lot of people by working very closely with our talent acquisition team, unit leadership, executive directors, and the CNOs of Loyola Medicine. Through these relationships, I learn the skills and knowledge required on different units so I can help provide insight into what the unit may require if a nurse is interested in transferring.

When a nurse shares they are not happy and are thinking of leaving, I will set up a flight risk meeting. This includes the director, manager, educator, and clinical nurse leader (CNL) of the unit, as well as the new grad residency director. We together discuss the best approach to support the nurse, such as identifying skills gaps and how to close them. We have those hard conversations—what are the specific reasons someone is leaving and how can we as an organization address and correct it? This is a great way to plan and implement full leadership team support for the nurse.

ANPD: Can you tell us a little about the main programs you oversee?

DR: A lot of what I do involves engagement in nursing. I am on the engagement committee, where I hear what the bedside nurses in the organization may want or need (e.g. Nurses Week, DAISY Awards, or certification days). This committee then brings these ideas up to the executive team. During COVID, Loyola Medicine relaunched a student nurse extern program and when I joined the team, was handed this project. The program provides up to 45 senior nursing students the opportunity to join our organization and work as a float PCT for the last year of school. They are given shadowing opportunities and education classes that focus on communication, skill building, and prioritizing. Our goal is that after this program, we would hire the nurses into our PTAP accredited new grad nurse (NGN) residency program. I also am involved in our clinical ladder program and serve as chair of the advancement committee. Since I am part of the Center for Professional Practice and Development department, I also assist in teaching classes for our nursing and patient care tech teams. 

ANPD: What does the future of your role look like?

DR: I envision the next year to be spent collecting data on the work that we are doing—looking at trends in why nurses are leaving and ways to make continued change to increase retention. We implemented a flight risk process for our new grads who are either leaving the organization or possibly are not a fit for the unit. This meeting, which includes the unit leadership, directors, NGN residency program director and implementation specialist, provides time to discuss behavioral, knowledge, and skill strengths and opportunities, and a plan of support. This process will continue to be refined in the future. I would also like to be more present in the ambulatory environment.

ANPD: What qualities do you/NPD practitioners have that make them a good fit for this role focusing on retaining nurses?

DR: I think you have to be comfortable in your own skin. Nurses can come in with emotional distress (e.g. crying or feeling angry), and you have to be able to sit back, pay attention, and not overreact. You have to be able to listen—a skill I'm constantly working on. You have to be able to continue to engage them and build their trust to get to the root of their issues.

You also have to be someone who doesn't take work home with you. I learned from my background in oncology that you can't take work home with you as it will eat you alive. Some days don't go as well as you want. Some days are very frustrating. However, other days are very rewarding.

ANPD: Can you tell us about what motivates you each day? What are you most proud of?

DR: I like the team I work with. And I am so motivated when new grads come in and say, “thank you!”  There have been a handful who have sent a thank you email as well with a picture of them smiling at graduation. That is my favorite part.

My role allows me to retain people and inspire them to stay in the profession—and that makes me excited. I’m most proud that we are now getting referrals for nurses at risk of leaving early in their unhappiness. Instead of being referred to someone who has already decided to leave, managers are referring nurses who they simply have “a feeling” about. This allows us to intervene and find solutions early.

Candace Richards, MSN-RN, PCCN, NPD-BC, Rimmele’s colleague, shared her perspective on Rimmele’s important role: “So many people trust her and value her. One way she has supported me is when I was overseeing the PCT training program. There were a few students who were unhappy and I went to Debbie and she gave me such great advice. I think just starting something new or changing something to a difference in the nurse’s life is really what she likes to do. And I want to do that too, because in the end, it's all about helping them.”