Unlocking retention: a prescriptive framework for retaining trained staff in critical care units.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Workforce Studies
• Patient Safety Research

Background:

• Nurse turnover in critical care units (CCUs) poses significant risks to patient outcomes and healthcare systems globally.
• Effective strategies are crucial for retaining skilled nursing staff in CCUs to maintain quality of care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a prescriptive framework aimed at reducing nurse turnover within critical care units.
• To identify and prioritize factors influencing nurse attrition in CCUs.

Main Methods:

• An integrated methodology combining Delphi, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), and Entropy was employed.
• Comparative prioritization of factors and subfactors affecting nursing staff turnover in CCUs was conducted.

Main Results:

• Organizational and individual factors were identified as primary drivers of critical care nurse attrition.
• Staffing policy, chronic fatigue, and career perception emerged as leading subfactors influencing nurses' decisions to stay or leave.

Conclusions:

• The study offers a unique, comprehensive framework for critical care nurse retention, specifically tailored for the UAE.
• Findings provide valuable insights for healthcare professionals and researchers to enhance nurse retention strategies and theoretical understanding.