Reasons why Dutch novice nurses leave nursing: A qualitative approach

Abstract

Shortages in the nursing profession are increasing. It is, therefore, imperative to understand why novice nurses are leaving the profession. This qualitative study explores Dutch novice nurses' motives for leaving the profession. Individual semi-structured interviews were held with seventeen former novice nurses who had decided to leave nursing within two years after graduation. Data was collected and analysed following the principles of Thematic Analysis, leading to six themes; 1) Lack of challenge; ambitious to progress further in management or research roles. 2) Lack of passion; no feeling of passion for patient care. 3) Lack of perceived competence; not feeling "up to the challenge". 4) Lack of job satisfaction due to heavy workload; work-life imbalance and inability to deliver high-quality care. 5) Lack of work capacity due to non-work-related health conditions; unmet requirements for job or work environment adjustment. 6) Lack of feeling of belonging; suffering from a negative attitude of colleagues to one another. To prevent novice nurse professional turnover, measures such as capacity building, supervisor support and a tailored personal development plan could be taken. To make novice nurses feel safe and reassured, support from colleagues and supervisors is important. Such measures require thoughtful implementation and evaluation.

The relationship between perceived competence and self-esteem among novice nurses – a cross-sectional study

“…This, considered in the broader context of the relationship between self-esteem and competencies, indicates that they represent also a group of people with a lower competence level. The negative relationship between competence and nurses’ turnover intention was earlier revealed [ 24 , 50 ], but transition programs are strong evidence to support newly qualified nurses’ retention [ 51 ]. However, new graduate nurses feel reduced levels of support over time [ 29 ].…”

Teaching Gerontology in Transcultural Academics: A Phenomenographic Study of Thai and Swedish Nurse Educators’ Conceptions of Gerontological Nursing

“…More RNs qualified in GN are needed to relieve the heavy physical and psychological workload for the few staffed RNs in place ( Bratt & Gautun, 2018 ; Kox et al, 2020 ; Marmstål Hammar et al, 2020 ). This has in Sweden, the rest of Europe, and in the United States become even more evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has also revealed an urgent need to increase the competence level of nursing and care assistants ( Harrington et al, 2020 ; Kabir et al, 2020 ; OECD, 2020a ).…”

A Profile of Novice and Senior Nurses’ Communication Patterns during the Transition to Practice Period: An Application of the Roter Interaction Analysis System

“…In some studies, it has been pointed out that novice nurses benefit considerably from support from experienced nurses [17,18]. Notably, emotional support and social talk, which can facilitate workplace relationships, have been shown to have a positive impact on novice nurses' commitment and willingness to stay in their role [19][20][21]. Interpersonal forms of workplace communication can help novice nurses as they negotiate the challenging aspects of their transition to practice [22].…”