Sommer, D.; Wilhelm, S.; Wahl, F. Nurses’ Workplace Perceptions in Southern Germany—Job Satisfaction and Self-Intended Retention towards Nursing. Healthcare2024, 12, 172.
Sommer, D.; Wilhelm, S.; Wahl, F. Nurses’ Workplace Perceptions in Southern Germany—Job Satisfaction and Self-Intended Retention towards Nursing. Healthcare 2024, 12, 172.
Sommer, D.; Wilhelm, S.; Wahl, F. Nurses’ Workplace Perceptions in Southern Germany—Job Satisfaction and Self-Intended Retention towards Nursing. Healthcare2024, 12, 172.
Sommer, D.; Wilhelm, S.; Wahl, F. Nurses’ Workplace Perceptions in Southern Germany—Job Satisfaction and Self-Intended Retention towards Nursing. Healthcare 2024, 12, 172.
Abstract
Addressing the increasing nursing demand in the face of a limited nursing workforce, understanding job satisfaction and retention becomes critical. Our cross-sectional study, conducted among 2,572 nurses in Bavaria, Germany, uncovers a dichotomy where nurses have strong empathy for their profession yet yearn for significant improvements. The top areas identified for enhancement include (i) ensuring sufficient time for patient care, (ii) providing a reliable service organization with minimal unplanned shift changes, and (iii) streamlining nursing documentation. Moreover, the largest disparity between expectations and job satisfaction was measured in patient care time. Multivariable regression analysis further investigates factors influencing intentions to stay in the profession, including (i) demographic aspects (age, living conditions), (ii) working area, (iii) working hours, (iv) career choice satisfaction, (v) career opportunities, (vi) payment, (vii) working and rest times, and (viii) satisfaction derived from aiding individuals in challenging life situations. The findings uncover a need to change nursing conditions, and measures for younger nurses and elderly care nursing. Although there are limitations, and a potential bias due to convenience sampling, our study provides key insights into nursing conditions. Future research should broaden its scope to investigate nurse job satisfaction and retention, emphasizing potential relief tools such as digitization.
Keywords
nursing, healthcare jobs, intention to leave, job satisfaction, employee retention
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Nursing
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
