Influences on Mid-Career Nurses' Intent to Stay in Direct Care Roles.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Retention Strategies
• Healthcare Workforce Management
• Organizational Psychology in Healthcare

Background:

• Mid-career nurse retention is critical for patient safety and addressing nursing shortages.
• Current research often overlooks the unique challenges faced by mid-career nurses.
• Focusing on this demographic is essential for healthcare stability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the intent to stay (ITS) among mid-career direct care nurses.
• To investigate the influence of authentic leadership, workplace belonging, opportunity, and job satisfaction on ITS.
• To identify key factors driving retention in this vital nursing cohort.

Main Methods:

• A national online survey was administered to 138 mid-career direct care nurses.
• Descriptive statistics, correlational analyses, and hierarchical regression were employed.
• Data analysis focused on understanding the predictors of intent to stay.

Main Results:

• A significant portion of mid-career nurses (43.5%) expressed intent to stay.
• Positive correlations were observed between leadership, belonging, opportunity, job satisfaction, and ITS.
• Job satisfaction and professional opportunities were identified as significant predictors of retention.

Conclusions:

• Nurse leaders should implement multifaceted strategies to improve mid-career nurse retention.
• Prioritizing job satisfaction and creating avenues for professional growth are key.
• These interventions can help mitigate nursing shortages and enhance patient care.