Should I stay or should I go? A study exploring why healthcare students consider leaving their programme.

Background: Attrition in healthcare programmes is a growing concern internationally. Students leave for a variety of reasons but it is difficult to understand the complex interactions that eventually lead to attrition.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to identify the factors that prompted students to consider leaving their programme, and to make recommendations regarding strategies to reduce attrition.

Design: One aspect of a larger survey, which itself was part of a larger sequential mixed methods study.

Settings: Nine universities in the North West of England.

Methods: An online survey developed as part of a mixed methods sequential exploratory study was completed by students on nursing and allied-health programmes. The detailed responses obtained for a question relating to if the students have ever considered leaving their current programme were analysed both quantitatively (content analysis) and qualitatively (framework analysis).

Results: 1080 students completed the survey (an estimated 11% response rate); of this group 999 students answered the question 'have you ever considered leaving your current programme?' 465 students (47%) indicated that they had considered leaving and provided detailed comments explaining the circumstances that induced them to deliberate whether or not to stay. A thematic analysis of the data found three distinct themes: dissatisfaction with academic workload and support; difficulties associated with clinical placements, and personal concerns and challenges. A significant number of student comments combined two or more of these themes. A number of students also detailed why they decided to stay.

Conclusions: Those students that had considered leaving frequently described how a combination of diverse factors accumulated to lead to them contemplating leaving their programme. Strategies to reduce attrition in healthcare students need to consider the student lifecycle from recruitment to graduation, to set reasonable student expectations and ensure that a career within healthcare is both desired and valued.