Document Type
Journal Article
Publisher
Dove Medical Press Ltd.
Place of Publication
United Kingdom
Faculty
Faculty of Health, Engineering and Science
School
School of Nursing and Midwifery
RAS ID
19461
Abstract
Aim: To examine specific elements of nursing leadership linked to intention to leave, in public acute care hospitals. Background: Nurse turnover is a global issue receiving widespread attention due to prolonged and projected workforce shortages. Nurse management and leadership qualities have been associated with intention to leave and turnover of nurses. The role of the nurse unit managers in the retention of nurses is becoming increasingly important, particularly because of their strong influence on the quality and stability of the work environment. Methods: Data were collected from 6 2 medical, surgical, and mixed units across eleven public acute care hospitals in three Australian states (September 2 008 to August 2 010). A total of 1 ,673 nurses completed a nurse survey that included measures of intention to leave and leadership aspects of the practice environment. Analyses explored specific leadership characteristics that were associated with turnover intent. Results: The role of nursing unit managers was confirmed to be a major factor in nurses’ intention to remain or leave their current workplace. Nurses valued “human” skills more highly than other leadership characteristics, including their manager’s connection with nurses’ concerns, clarity, participation in decisions, and encouragement. Conclusion: Strong leadership qualities in the nursing unit manager have been associated with greater job satisfaction, reduced turnover intention among nursing staff, and improved patient outcomes. Nurse leaders need to be supported in an effort to retain nurses given ongoing workforce issues and to ensure high-quality patient care.
DOI
10.2147/NRR.S46155
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 License
Comments
Roche, M. A., Duffield, C., Dimitrelis, S., & Frew, B. (2015). Leadership skills for nursing unit managers to decrease intention to leave. Nursing: Research and Reviews, 5(May), 57-64. Available here