Turnover Intention Among Nurses: The Role of Burnout Dimensions and Interprofessional Relationships With Physicians

Abstract

Job burnout and the professional relationship between nurses and physicians affect the nurses’ intention to leave their profession and ultimately the quality of care. In this study, we determine the prevalence of turnover intention among nurses and its relationship with personal and occupational characteristics, as well as burnout domains and the professional relationship between nurses and physicians. In this cross-sectional study, 296 nurses from hospitals affiliated with Tehran University of Medical Sciences were selected using a multi-stage sampling method. Burnout is assessed via the Maslach Burnout Inventory. The physician-nurse professional relationship and intention turnover were evaluated using the Shokri and Cammann questionnaires, respectively. SPSS 26 software was applied for data analysis. The rate of turnover intention among nurses was 61.5%. A significant negative relationship was found between the nurse's age, work experience, and number of children and their intention to leave the job. (P<0.01). The turnover intention was higher among nurses with rotating shifts compared to those with fixed shifts (P=0.04). The results of the Pearson correlation analysis revealed a significant positive relationship between the burnout dimensions of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, and turnover intention (P<0.01), as well as a negative relationship between the dimension of personal achievement and the nurse’s abandonment tendency (P<0.01). Additionally, there was a significant negative relationship between the doctor-nurse professional relationship and nurses’ intention to quit (P<0.01). Our findings indicate that emotional exhaustion and a positive nurse-physician professional relationship significantly increase turnover intention among nurses, while personal accomplishment decreases it. Depersonalization did not have a significant impact on turnover intention. These results highlight the importance of addressing burnout factors and fostering collaborative interprofessional relationships to reduce turnover intention and enhance retention in healthcare settings.