Identifying Patterns of Turnover Intention Among Alabama Frontline Nurses in Hospital Settings During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: Current research about frontline nurse stress and turnover intention lacks context related to rural communities' plight in providing organizational resources during the current COVID-19 pandemic. These implications have been particularly underexamined in the United States, whose regional differences may influence how frontline nurses perceive the access and utility of organizational resources. This study investigates if anxiety and stress while working during the current COVID-19 pandemic contribute to frontline nurses' desire to leave their current position in Alabama hospital settings. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was developed and distributed as a Qualtrics survey to frontline nurses using social media and professional contacts. A total of 111 frontline nurse respondents within May 19-June 12, 2020 were included in this study. Results: A significant correlation was found between gender (p= 0.002), marital status (p= 0.000) and seniority (p= 0.049) on turnover intention. A nurse's perceived anxiety and stress related to their patients' acuity (r= 0.257, p= 0.004), their personal health as a risk factor (r= 0.507, p= 0.000), their patient assignments (r= 0.239, p= 0.01), their personal protective equipment (r= 0.412, p= 0.000), and their psychological support (r= 0.316, p= 0.001) correspond to higher turnover intention among nurses working with patients infected with COVID-19. Conclusion: Perceived resource loss in task autonomy, PPE, and psychosocial support increased turnover intention among frontline nurses in Alabama. Research is needed to understand how intrinsic motivations and social support influence individual nurse staff's perceptions of resource loss and job demands. Further, more research is necessary to examine the implications of rurality and place in discussing turnover intention and organizational resources across multiple health systems.

The Interactive Effect of COVID-19 Risk and Hospital Measures on Turnover Intentions of Healthcare Workers: A Time-Lagged Study

“…The literature on healthcare workers indicates that lack of perceived organizational support is among the several factors that enhance turnover intention and other negative behaviors [37,38]. Previous studies also claim that fear caused by the contagious disease can be reduced when healthcare workers are confident that hospital management prioritizes their safety [22]. In short, the perception of hospital measures against COVID-19 can be an important resource to help employees safeguard their resources.…”

“…The lack of available treatment for COVID-19 could be a concrete cause of healthcare workers' turnover. Employee perceptions about the measures taken against the disease, act as a deciding factor for quitting the job [22]. Existing studies have shown that healthcare workers are more likely to stay and provide treatment for infectious diseases if they perceive that the hospital has taken sufficient measures to ensure their protection [22].…”

“…Employee perceptions about the measures taken against the disease, act as a deciding factor for quitting the job [22]. Existing studies have shown that healthcare workers are more likely to stay and provide treatment for infectious diseases if they perceive that the hospital has taken sufficient measures to ensure their protection [22]. COVID-19, a highly contagious disease, has also raised concerns among healthcare workers regarding the measures taken by hospitals against the infection [23].…”

Healthcare Workers’ Burdens During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Systematic Review

“…[8][9][10][11][12][13] Their heavy workloads affect their ability to cope with the demands of their work and to derive a sense of fulfillment from ensuring patients' safety and providing people with high-quality care. [14][15][16][17] The responsibility of healthcare providers is to directly provide and manage COVID-19 care processes, 18,19 which, considering the overwhelming number of cases, may cause them to develop mental health issues and fail to perceive their own psychological distress symptoms such as anxiety or depression. 20,21 The perspectives of healthcare providers experiencing burnout during the current pandemic should thus be obtained to gain a better understanding of how they are handling such situation and to help them resolve their issues.…”

Determinants of Employee Turnover: A Case During the Covid-19 Pandemic

“…Cronbach's alpha statistics were above 0.60 for each construct which satisfies the minimum threshold of 0.60 (Mohamad, Sulaiman, Sern, & Salleh, 2015) indicating that the constructs are reliable. Also, several sociodemographic characters that may be influential on employee turnover during the Covid-19 pandemic such as gender and age were considered as control variables (Bajrami, et al, 2021;Cole, Ali, Ahmed, Hamasha, & Jordan, 2021). The questionnaire was first developed in English and translated to the local (Sinhala) language.…”