Home‐care nursing staff in self‐directed teams are more satisfied with their job and feel they have more autonomy over patient care: a nationwide survey

Abstract

This study suggests that home-care organizations should consider the use of self-directed teams as this increases nursing staff's job satisfaction and may therefore help to retain nursing staff in home care.

Attractiveness of working in home care: An online focus group study among nurses

“…Furthermore, the OFG discussions showed that home‐care nurses often find working in a self‐directed team attractive, a finding that is backed up by other research (Gray et al., ; Maurits et al., ; Tjepkema, ). Home‐care nurses in self‐directed teams experience shared responsibility and the freedom to make decisions about the organisation of care, which is associated with the concept of organisational autonomy.…”

“…With regard specifically to organisational autonomy, the rise of self‐directed teams in western countries is an interesting trend (Gray, Sarnak, & Burgers, ; Maurits, De Veer, Groenewegen, & Francke, ; Tjepkema, ). A “self‐directed team” can be described as a team of home‐care nurses that organises nursing care independently, in an optimum way for their patients and without directions from a manager.…”

“…Self‐directed teams differ from traditional teams in which managers have more influence on the nursing care and practice setting (Gray et al., ; Tjepkema, ). Furthermore, working in these self‐directed teams is associated with enhanced autonomy over patient care (Maurits et al., ).…”

Optimization of home care nurses in Canada: A scoping review

“…Similarly, district nurses in the UK (HCNs with a specialist qualification), who are the foundation of the home health system, have also experienced 18% funding cuts since 2010, which has led to service redesign to address growing service demands (Morris, ). Additionally, many Western European countries are facing HCN shortages to meet population needs (Maurits, Veer, Groenewegen, & Francke, ). Given this fiscal climate and the contributions of HCN, optimising the existing workforce is essential to ensure that care is not compromised.…”

“…Krietzer and colleagues argue that dissatisfaction in the US nursing workforce is related to bureaucratic structures, poor working conditions, and a loss of autonomy which has led to shortages in the workforce (Kreitzer, Monsen, Nandram, & De Blok, ). In contrast, an innovative self‐directed nursing team model of care—Buurtzorg—developed in the Netherlands has shown to increase nursing satisfaction and a sense of autonomy over patient care, particularly for nursing assistants and bachelor's degree prepared nurses (Maurits et al, ). These autonomous nurse‐led teams have been shown to spend little time on administration by using computerised systems, make local connections, and support continuity in care (Dharamshi, ; Sheldon, ).…”