Nurses' engagement levels in an Italian public healthcare trust: findings from a cross-sectional study

SUMMARY: Introduction. Assessing nursing engagement and designing strategies to improve engagement according to the specific needs of the staff have been considered essential to avoid losing nurses, mitigate future shortages and improve patients' outcomes. Objectives. To explore engagement levels of staff nurses working in an Italian public health-care trust comprising a general hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, district centers and mental health services, and their association with demographic and professional variables. Methods. The Health Care Advisory Board's Nurse Engagement Survey (NES) was used to measure 547 nurses' engagement levels. Results. Out of 499 nurses, 8% were engaged, 40% were content, 39% were ambivalent and 13% were disengaged. According to the multiple linear regression analysis which has showed R 27.3% (R2 7.5%) of the variance in the total score of NES, being older than 45 years was associated with an increased likelihood of being work-engaged (β 0.121, [Confidence of Interval] CI 95% 0.066 to 0.457); differently, having the intention to leave the unit in the next three months (β -0.168, CI 95% -0.552 to -0.179), and working at the hospital levels as compared to other settings (e.g., Mental Health Service, β -0.150, CI 95% -0.140 to -0.038) were negatively associated with the WE. Conclusions. Nursing leaders should prioritize strategies to increase Registered Nurses' engagement. Specific initiatives devoted to younger nurses and to those intending to leave the unit, as well as to those working at the hospital level, are needed given these groups have a higher likelihood to be not or poorly engaged.