Societal perceptions of male nurses in South Korea: A Q-methodological study

Factors influencing turnover intention among male nurses in China: A large-scale descriptive correlational study

AIM

This study examined the correlation among turnover intention, emotional intelligence and job burnout in male nurses and determined its influencing factors.

BACKGROUND

The number of male nurses has increased in China; however, the turnover rate is very high. Nurses' turnover intention is related to job burnout and emotional intelligence.

INTRODUCTION

Recent studies have shown that job burnout and emotional intelligence are related to medical and health institution employees' intention to leave their jobs. It is not clear if the same conclusions can be drawn about male nurses.

METHODS

For this cross-sectional study, 627 male nurses were recruited from across China between May and July 2018. Data were collected through an online questionnaire, and Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression were performed to analyse the data.

RESULTS

There was a weak negative, moderate positive and moderate negative correlation between turnover intention and emotional intelligence, turnover intention and job burnout, and emotional intelligence and job burnout, respectively. Factors that significantly affected turnover intention among male nurses included job burnout, young age, lack of interest in nursing and working in the emergency department.

CONCLUSION

The study revealed the factors that affected male nurses' turnover intention and the relationships between turnover intention, emotional intelligence and job burnout.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT AND SOCIAL POLICY

Hospital managers should provide necessary help and support to reduce male nurse turnover rates and incorporate emotional intelligence training. The policy should eliminate the unfair college admission practices for students choosing nursing majors, raise the nursing profession's salaries and vigorously develop specialty nursing. In addition, diversified values should be promoted, and stereotypes of male nurses in nursing should be broken.

Work Experience of Chinese Male Nurses Based on the Job Demands-Resources Model: A Cross-Sectional Study

Aim. This study aimed to quantitatively compare the effects of perceived social support, resilience, and task load on occupational burnout and flow at work in male nurses, as well as the complex relationships among these variables. Background. Male nurses play a vital role in the healthcare system. However, little is known about the key factors that may improve the work experience of male nurses. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted from June to December 2021. A convenience sample of 356 male nurses completed measures of general information, burnout, flow at work, perceived social support, resilience, and task load. Dominance analysis and network analysis were used to explore the associations between the variables studied. Results. Among the variables studied, perceived social support most strongly predicted burnout, while perceived social support and resilience had equal predictive weights in flow at work. The network analysis found that resilience was the bridge indicator with the strongest connections to other variables. Conclusion. The interventions focused on the perceived social support and resilience of male nurses could help improve their work experience. Implications for Nursing Management. Nursing administrators should give male nurses more support and understanding to reduce burnout at work. At the same time, administrators can conduct psychological lectures to improve male nurses’ resilience, thereby increasing their flow at work. Providing challenging tasks that match male nurses’ skills could also help improve their work experience.

Current Stereotypes Associated with Nursing and Nursing Professionals: An Integrative Review

Nursing and nursing professionals are associated with social stereotypes, which may hinder the profession’s development and future prospects as a scientific discipline. The aim of this study was to identify and describe the stereotypes associated with the nursing profession—students and professionals. Therefore, we carried out an integrative review. The search was conducted using PubMed, WOS, and CINAHL databases, and its search strategy was based on a combination of standardised keywords and natural vocabulary, with a temporal limit between 2016 and 2021. The data extraction and analysis was based on the conceptual framework developed by Whittemore and Knafl. Twenty-seven studies were included in the review, and their results were classified and coded. Two categories emerged, namely, stereotypes relating to the professionals’ gender and stereotypes relating to the profession itself. We concluded that the nursing profession is viewed as female with low skills, social status, salary, academic level and entry requirements, and with little autonomy. Male nurses’ professional competencies and masculinity are questioned, while the work carried out by female nurses is viewed as unprofessional. To reduce these stereotypes and bias we must present the nursing profession as a scientific discipline, developed by both men and women. Specific channels for this awareness-raising work include interventions from universities and the media, and participation in health policies.

Current occupational well-being status and protective and risk factors of male nurses in Chengdu, China: A cross-sectional study

Aims

This study explores the current occupational well‐being status of male nurses in Chengdu, China, and identifies the concomitant protective and risk factors.

Design

This study has a cross‐sectional survey design.

Methods

From 13 July to 21 July 2019, a cross‐sectional survey involving 209 male nurses in 7 tertiary hospitals in Chengdu, China, was conducted using a general information questionnaire, the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale, the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire‐II, the Professional Identity Scale and the Nurses' Occupational Well‐being Scale.

Results

The score of male nurses' occupational well‐being was 78.7 ± 14.2. The higher the mindfulness and professional identity (p = .002, p < .001, respectively), the higher the occupational well‐being of male nurses. The lower the experiential avoidance, the higher the occupational well‐being (p = .001). The highest occupational well‐being was found among male nurses who had less than 5‐years' working experience.

Conclusions

The results suggest that male nurses' occupational well‐being was at a moderate level. Mindfulness and professional identity were the protective factors of male nurses' occupational well‐being, and experiential avoidance was the risk factor. Nursing managers should ascertain male nurses' current occupational well‐being and the influencing factors and formulate effective improvement strategies. Male nurse courses on enhancing mindfulness and professional identity and reducing experiential avoidance should be explored, with a focus on helping nurses improve their professional well‐being and, in turn, prospectively reducing the turnover rate.

A scoping review of Q-methodology in healthcare research

BACKGROUND

Q-methodology is an approach to studying complex issues of human 'subjectivity'. Although this approach was developed in the early twentieth century, the value of Q-methodology in healthcare was not recognised until relatively recently. The aim of this review was to scope the empirical healthcare literature to examine the extent to which Q-methodology has been utilised in healthcare over time, including how it has been used and for what purposes.

METHODS

A search of three electronic databases (Scopus, EBSCO-CINAHL Complete, Medline) was conducted. No date restriction was applied. A title and abstract review, followed by a full-text review, was conducted by a team of five reviewers. Included articles were English-language, peer-reviewed journal articles that used Q-methodology (both Q-sorting and inverted factor analysis) in healthcare settings. The following data items were extracted into a purpose-designed Excel spreadsheet: study details (e.g., setting, country, year), reasons for using Q-methodology, healthcare topic area, participants (type and number), materials (e.g., ranking anchors and Q-set), methods (e.g., development of the Q-set, analysis), study results, and study implications. Data synthesis was descriptive in nature and involved frequency counting, open coding and the organisation by data items.

RESULTS

Of the 2,302 articles identified by the search, 289 studies were included in this review. We found evidence of increased use of Q-methodology in healthcare, particularly over the last 5 years. However, this research remains diffuse, spread across a large number of journals and topic areas. In a number of studies, we identified limitations in the reporting of methods, such as insufficient information on how authors derived their Q-set, what types of analyses they performed, and the amount of variance explained.

CONCLUSIONS

Although Q-methodology is increasingly being adopted in healthcare research, it still appears to be relatively novel. This review highlight commonalities in how the method has been used, areas of application, and the potential value of the approach. To facilitate reporting of Q-methodological studies, we present a checklist of details that should be included for publication.

Gender difference in the perceptions of the patient safety culture: a case from a medical center in Taiwan

Purpose

Gender difference exists in the perception of the patient safety culture in healthcare organizations. A case from a medical center in Taiwan is presented to examine how different genders perceive the patient safety culture in practice from 2014 to 2017.

Design/methodology/approach

A longitudinal study using the data from 2014 to 2017 is conducted quantitatively. Mann–Whitney U test and one-way analysis of variance are employed for analyses.

Findings

The results showed that female nurses had significantly higher emotional exhaustion than male nurses in 2015 and 2016 indicating male nurses had better fatigue recovery than their female counterparts. In addition, male nurses felt a higher degree of fatigue in 2016 and 2017 than those in 2015 statistically. In contrast, female nurses felt more stressful in 2016 and 2017 than those in 2014 statistically. Female nurses had higher emotional exhaustion in 2016 and 2017 than those in 2014 and 2015 statistically.

Practical implications

To sum up, female nurses were more stressful than before, and their recovery was also relatively poor particularly in 2016 and 2017. There is a need to reduce the degree of fatigue for female nurses in this medical center through employee assistance programs, mindfulness-based stress reduction programs, building up female nurses' positive currency and setting up their appreciative inquiry. In contrast to female nurses, male nurses recovered better from fatigue. This might encourage hospital management to deploy male nurses more effectively in this medical center.

Originality/value

The results enable the hospital management to know there is a gender difference in this case hospital. More attention on female nurses is required.

Subjectivity about Turnover Intention among Male Nurses in South Korea: A Q-Methodological Study

PURPOSE

Around the world, male nurses face a variety of difficulties within clinical settings; accordingly, a large number of male nurses consider changing their occupation. In particular, male nurses in a number of Asian countries with a Confucian heritage experience difficulties. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore individual differences in turnover intention among male nurses in one such country, South Korea, and on that basis to suggest concrete strategies for reducing turnover among male nurses in Confucian cultures.

METHODS

Q methodology, which is used to analyze human subjectivity, was applied. Q statements were derived from 207 candidate statements gathered from various documents and interviews; 40 statements were finalized. A purposive sample of 41 male nurses were selected as likely to have diverse opinions on turnover intention of male nurses. The collected data were analyzed using PQMethod software.

RESULTS

Four distinct types of subjectivity about turnover intention among male nurses were identified: (1) "Pursuing occupational values," (2) "Dissatisfaction with treatment," (3) "Seeking a relaxed and stable life," and (4) "Conflict related to organizational culture."

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests various ways of reducing turnover and increasing retention among male nurses based on the four identified perspectives, especially in Confucian-heritage regions.