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To identify successful strategies and underpinning mechanisms for retaining nurses in home visiting nursing services.
Scoping review.
MEDLINE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, Theses Global Databases (1 January 2000 to 23 November 2023); international nursing organisations websites (January–April 2024).
The methods followed the Joanna Briggs Institute guidance. Two researchers independently screened and reviewed, with disagreements resolved through discussion. Included papers were analysed for underlying mechanisms.
Of 1219 records identified, seven met the criteria. Four papers reported senior administrators' experience of successful multiple types of strategies (unspecified), but none reported retention outcomes. Three papers reported evaluations of initiatives providing clinical and peer support to nurses new to home visiting nursing. All three papers reported improved retention rates at 12 months in comparison to the year previous, although there was no consideration of other potentially influencing factors. We identified eight underlying mechanisms in the seven papers: (1) finance incentives; (2) work schedule flexibility for individuals; (3) team level management; (4) positive feedback on job performance; (5) team level interpersonal relationships; (6) the work organisation and resources; (7) support to individual's development in knowledge, clinical skill and confidence and (8) participation in organisation's decision making.
This review identified noticeable few papers over a time when all countries have been trying to address the growing health needs of the older populations. The gap in evidence as to the most effective combinations of retention strategies for home visiting nursing requires urgent attention. Clinical leaders and managers require evidence to inform their strategies for retaining home visiting nurses in order to provide high quality care as more health care systems increase the provision of acute, chronic, and palliative care in patients' own homes.
This paper conforms to PRISMA reporting guidelines for scoping reviews.
No patient or public contribution.
To investigate the experience and perceptions of the effectiveness of retention strategies of nurses and nursing associates in district nursing services.
Mixed methods cross-sectional online survey.
Electronic invitations were circulated via district nursing professional networks to complete an online survey in England. The survey questions were developed from international evidence-based guidance. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively and using multinomial regression analysis, tested the variation in experienced strategies by job and work characteristics. Content analysis informed qualitative data analysis.
Three hundred and forty-five completed surveys were received. Over 60% of respondents reported experiencing strategies related to a safe working environment (75%), flexible work schedules (65%), well-being (64%) and professional development opportunities (60%). The least frequently reported strategies experienced were involvement in service policymaking (26%), reducing job demands (31%); and creating cohesive nursing teams (40%). Nurses on lower pay grades were statistically less likely than those on the higher pay bands to experience strategies involving professional growth opportunities and involvement in service decision-making. Nurses working in affluent areas were statistically more likely to report experiencing more types of retention strategies than those working in socio-economically deprived areas. Participants' views on effective strategies were mixed but attention to financial aspects (particularly travel costs), manageable workloads, flexibility in work scheduling plus tailored induction/support for those new to district nursing were given the most testimony as effective.
Retention strategies are created and enacted by those within employing organisations, district nursing services and district nursing teams, but within the context of a wider health care and labour market system. We suggest the findings could be the starting point for review by district nursing services experiencing high vacancy rates. Our findings raise questions for subsequent investigation across health systems.
This paper adhered to the relevant Equator guideline A Consensus-Based Checklist for Reporting of Survey Studies (CROSS), https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-021-06737-1.
This study did not include patient or public involvement in its design, conduct or reporting.
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