Measuring the Nursing Work Environment during Public Health Emergencies: Scale Adaptation and Validation

To develop a scale for measuring nurse's perceived work environment during the public health emergencies (PHEs) and assess its reliability and validity.

Although there is extensive research on instruments for measuring nursing work environments in regular healthcare settings, there is a lack of specific scales tailored to address the unique work conditions experienced by nurses during PHEs.

This study employed a cross-sectional design for psychometric evaluation and adhered to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) statement.

A self-report scale, the Chinese Nursing Work Environment Scale for Public Health Emergencies (C-NWE-PHE), was developed, integrating situational characteristics. Data on demographics, adapted scale scores, and subjective evaluations of nursing management performance were collected from 1156 nurses through online surveys conducted between January 2023 and March 2023. Confirmatory factor analysis, Pearson correlations, and Cronbach's alpha analyses were conducted to evaluate the psychometric properties of the scale.

The adapted C-NWE-PHE scale comprised 28 items organized into five subscales: Workforce and Deployment Support, Leadership and Emergency Management, Autonomy and Empowerment, Teamwork and Collaboration, and Logistics and Humanistic Care. Structural equation modelling showed satisfactory factor loadings for each subscale and a good model fit, confirming construct validity. The content validity and reliability of the total scale were confirmed.

This study provides empirical evidence for understanding and assessing the nursing work environment during PHEs with a psychometrically sound scale. Implications for Nursing Management. The C-NWE-PHE scale, along with its five identified constructs, provides a nuanced comprehension of working conditions amid PHEs. Implementing this scale could foster specific enhancements, support nurse retention efforts, and enhance the effectiveness of responses during challenging emergency situations.