Paper
Friday, July 13, 2007
This presentation is part of : Issues of the Nursing Workforce
Influence of the Nursing Work Environment on Nursing Outcomes
Caroline E. Brown, DEd, CNS, WHNP and Lauren Hunter, Ph, D, CNM, WHNP. Nursing, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
Learning Objective #1: describe the influence of nursing work environment on nursing outcomes at an academic medical center.
Learning Objective #2: contrast the finding of the current research study with other findings reported in the research literature.
          The nursing work environment impacts nurses and patients (Aiken, Clarke, Sloane, Sochalski & Siber, 2002; Larrabee, Ostrow, Withrow, Janney, Hobbs & Burant, 2004; Vahey & Aiken, Sloane, Clarke, Vargus, 2004).  Unhealthy nursing work environments have been demonstrated to contribute to nursing turnover. Nursing turnover destabilizes the nursing workforce and coupled with the nursing shortage, leads to short-staffing and use of contract labor, both which have been associated with threats to patient’s safety (Aiken et al, 2002) and patient’s satisfaction with their health care (Larrabee et al, 2004; Vahey et al, 2004). This, in turn, yields fiscal ramifications for organizations (Jones, 2004).  The purpose of this study was to begin to understand how the nursing work environment influences nursing and patient outcomes at an academic medical center in Southern California.

A descriptive, prospective, correlational non-experimental design was designed to explore the relationships between the nursing work environment, nurse’s intention to leave their current nursing position and nurse’s experience of moral distress. A convenience non-probability sample was recruited between January 2006 and March 2006 from inpatient nursing units following IRB approval. The research instruments and the demographic tool were computerized beginning with an introductory page including the informed consent statement and the ability to decline or accept the terms of the. Informed consent was documented as the participant accepted the terms of the study and completed the computerized surveys.  Data analysis is currently underway and will be completed by February 2007.  The findings will provide an understanding of the most salient concerns of the nursing workforce and provide a focused direction for the development of interventions to foster movement towards a healthy work environment.

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