Understanding Alternate Work Schedules and Their Potential to Improve Work-Life Well-Being for Veterans Affairs...

The employee experience of clinical personnel, especially nurses, is increasingly vital for health care organizations and is now part of health care's quintuple aim, which includes improving patient experience, population health, cost, and health equity. Nurse burnout and turnover intentions have heightened since the COVID-19 pandemic, with high workload and inadequate staffing as key organizational drivers. Flexible work schedules, such as 72/80 (where one works three 12-h shifts per week but receives the pay equivalent of 80 h), have been a longstanding countermeasure, but postpandemic data on their impact are limited.

This national evaluation investigates the impact of the 72/80 work schedule on Veterans Health Administration (VHA) nurses. We hypothesized that nurses on a 72/80 schedule experience less burnout, higher job satisfaction, greater work engagement, and lower turnover intentions.

We conducted a web-based survey including self-reported 72/80 work status and employee experience measures, alongside existing administrative data on employee outcomes. We analyzed the data using Mann-Whitney U tests, mixed effects, and linear regression models.

Eight thousand five hundred forty-five VHA nurses from 170 Veterans Affairs Medical Centers nationwide working in 24/7 bedded units completed the survey.

The 72/80 schedule was significantly associated with lower emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, and greater personal accomplishment. In addition, 72/80 status correlated with higher workplace engagement, job satisfaction, organizational satisfaction, and lower turnover intention.

The 72/80 work schedule shows significant potential as a transformative workforce strategy, providing substantial benefits in recruitment, retention, and employee satisfaction.