Being a professional nurse until retirement - a qualitative interview study in Germany

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Workforce Studies
• Qualitative Research

Background:

• Global nursing shortage exacerbated by demographic shifts and COVID-19.
• Projected deficit of 13 million nurses worldwide by the International Council of Nurses.
• Limited research on factors promoting long-term nurse retention until retirement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify factors contributing to the long-term retention of nurses in the profession.
• To explore personal, organizational, and societal factors supporting nurses who stay until retirement.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study using semi-structured expert interviews with 22 nurses in Germany.
• Participants had at least 30 years of work experience across various care settings.
• Analysis employed content-structuring qualitative content analysis with deductive and inductive coding.

Main Results:

• Three thematic categories emerged: personal resources/motivations, organizational context/working conditions, and recognition/social value.
• Personal factors include career motives, values, and generational influences.
• Organizational factors encompass job satisfaction, work-time control, role clarity, and coping strategies; recognition involves perceived societal value and professional identity.

Conclusions:

• Highlights positive factors promoting nurse job retention until retirement.
• Recommends enhancing working conditions, recognition, and support for personal motivations.
• Emphasizes retention-focused strategies to foster meaning, professional identity, and positive workplace culture.