Impact of HR retention strategies in healthcare: The case of Qatar

Abstract

Retention of healthcare workers is an international challenge. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that in two decades, the shortage of healthcare workers will double. This puts a pressure on the policy makers to come up with serious HR interventions to retain their employees and ensure the delivery of high quality care. In Qatar, the healthcare sector depends greatly on expatriates. This unique characteristic imposes risk on the stability of the healthcare workforce. Therefore, the Qatar National Health Strategy (2011-2016) emphasises the importance of exercising effective HR retention strategies. This review tries to explain the relationship between the retention strategies and employees' satisfaction and performance and how they impact the quality of care as perceived by patients/clients.