Enhancing nurses’ perceptions of having a place to reduce turnover intentions

Aim: To investigate whether education, tenure, being an advanced practice nurse, skill level, and time pressure impact perceptions of “having a place” and, further, turnover intentions. Background: Nursing shortages persist worldwide. Nurses’ turnover intentions are negatively related to their perceptions of “having a place” (i.e., the feeling that the nursing workplace is their territory). However, the sources of nurses’ perceptions of the perception of “having a place” remain unknown. Methods: Our research employed a cross-sectional and correlational design. This research was conducted at a large-scale hospital in northern Taiwan from December 2021 to January 2022. We used personnel data pertaining to 430 nurses as well as scales for time pressure, “having a place” and turnover intentions to assess nurses’ intention to leave their place of employment. The inclusion criteria focused on full-time nurses who worked for the hospital under investigation. Most of our participants were women. The STROBE statement was used as the EQUATOR checklist (supplemental file). Results: “Having a place” was positively related to educational level, tenure, and skill level, while being an advanced practice nurse was negatively associated with perceptions of “having a place,” which in turn were negatively related to turnover intention among nurses. Conclusion: Our study is the first to examine the antecedents of nurses’ perceptions of “having a place,” which include education, tenure, and skill level. Implications for nursing policy: Nursing policymakers could encourage nurses to pursue higher degrees and update their nursing skills while instilling perceptions of “having a place” in nurses with a brief tenure and advanced practice nurses.