Interventions to improve nurses' job satisfaction: A systematic review and meta-analysis

To identify current best evidence on the types of interventions that have been developed to improve job satisfaction among nurses and on the effectiveness of these interventions.

The systematic review is a quantitative systematic review and meta-analysis following a profile-likelihood random-effects model.

CINAHL, Medic, and Pubmed (Medline).

PICOS eligibility criteria were used to select original studies published between 2003-2019. The articles were screened by title (N = 489), abstract (N = 61), and full-text (N = 47). A total of 20 articles remained after the full-text screening process and further assess on risk of bias. The screening process was conducted by two authors independently and finally agreed together. A meta-analysis was performed to determine how the identified interventions influence nurses' job satisfaction.

The interventions were primarily educational and consisted of workshops, educational sessions, lessons, and training sessions. The postintervention differences between intervention and control groups in meta-analysis revealed that two interventions significantly improved nurses' job satisfaction. Notably, the spiritual intelligence training protocol and Professional Identity Development Program were found to be effective in improving job satisfaction.

Healthcare organizations and managers should consider implementing effective interventions to improve nurses' job satisfaction and reduce turnover. The results reported in this study highlight that nurse managers should focus on organizational strategies that will foster the intrinsic motivation of employees.

The current nursing shortage and increased turnover intentions are proving to be a global problem. For this reason, it is imperative that nurse managers plan strategies to improve nurses´ job satisfaction. The effective interventions detected in this study are a first step for developing human resource strategies for healthcare organizations. These findings propose that extrinsic factors (e.g., salary and rewards) will never be as effective in maintaining job satisfaction as intrinsic factors (e.g., spiritual intelligence, professional identity, and awareness).