Nursing Administration Commons^™

Burnout And Workforce Outcomes Among Registered Nurses, Madeline Willcoxen

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between staffing and organizational support interventions and workforce outcomes among registered nurses providing direct patient care in hospital settings. The study focused on three measurable outcomes: emotional exhaustion, absenteeism, and annual nurse turnover. The population included hospital-based registered nurses, and the comparison involved standard staffing and support conditions.

Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Studies published between 2015 and 2026 were identified using PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, and PsycINFO databases. Inclusion criteria required quantitative studies examining staffing or organizational support interventions among registered nurses in …

Evaluating The Burnout Mitigating Effects Of A Structured Mentorship Program In Newly Hired Advanced Practice Providers, Melissa Soper

DNP Projects

Importance: Burnout is a leading driver of clinician intent to leave, lower productivity, increased medical errors, and increased resource use.

Objective: The purpose of this project was to evaluate the effects of an evidence-based mentorship program on newly hired advanced practice providers’ (APPs’) level of stress, burnout, and professional fulfillment.

Results: At baseline, APPs demonstrated higher stress levels, moderate professional fulfillment, and low burnout. Outcomes showed improvement at the end of a mentorship program.

Conclusion: Longitudinal studies with larger sample sizes are needed to determine the true effect of a 6-month mentorship intervention on APP burnout, stress, and professional fulfillment.

Stronger Together: Exploring The Impact Of Peer Support Meetings On Stress And Burnout In Ambulatory Nurse Managers, Sara Wellman

DNP Projects

Background

Nurse manager (NM) burnout is common and leads to decreased staff productivity, departmental effectiveness, and leadership capacity. This results in decreased staff morale, poor conflict management, and ineffective communication. Stress reduction and resilience programs have been shown to reduce burnout and enhance resilience in NMs, but more focus needs to be directed toward NMs who work in ambulatory settings.

Purpose

The aim of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of a peer-to-peer resilience intervention in reducing stress and burnout among ambulatory nurse managers.

Methods

This project used a pre-test/post-test survey design and a convenience sample of ambulatory NMs. …

Nurse Leader Burnout: Exploring Ways To Improve Wellness And Resilience, Kimberly Leger Kenney

DNP Scholarly Projects

BACKGROUND: Burnout among nurse leaders is a growing concern, driven by increasing workload, operational demands, and challenges with work-life balance. Addressing burnout is critical to maintaining stability within the leadership team and to delivering high-quality patient care.

LOCAL PROBLEM: Prior to the development of the QI proposal, engagement survey results showed scores 0.11 points below the benchmark in leadership responsiveness, and more than 50 nurse leader positions have turned over in the past 5 years. The specific aims of this project include: 1. 75% of nurse leaders report that they would implement an activity from the toolkit. 2. Fewer than …

Joyful Nursing By Leading With Heart In Perinatal Loss Care And Staff Wellness, Kelli Griffiths, Holly Puckett, Bruce Slagle

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

This quasi-experimental study evaluates if providing individualized follow-up care through self-care bags, follow-up phone calls, open communication for debriefing, and tailored mental health resources enhances support for obstetric staff and improves their ability to care for patients experiencing perinatal loss. Interventions were implemented from February 2024 to August 2024. A total of 103 self-care bags were distributed throughout the designated hospital systems’ two labor and delivery departments. A five question post-intervention survey was conducted and found the following question to be statistically significant, “I feel the joy in nursing would be restored, to a degree, if obstetric staff were more …

Illuminating Leadership Excellence: An Evidence-Based Qi Intervention Reigniting Nurse Leaders From Burnout To Brilliance Using Caring Science And Reflective Practice, Matthew S. Elliott

Master's Projects and Capstones

Abstract

Problem: A 2024 assessment at a 250‑bed Northern California medical center revealed that 76% of 16 inpatient nurse leaders met "high‑burnout" criteria on the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and leader turnover had climbed to 25%, more than triple national benchmarks, threatening patient care quality, financial stability, and alignment with Magnet® and employee engagement goals.

Context: Root causes included pandemic‑era promotions without development support, a task‑oriented leadership culture, and eroding psychological safety (Press Ganey engagement ≈ 30%). An integrative logic model positioned Watson's Caring Science as the theoretical base, Schön's Reflective Model for adaptive learning, and the Prosci ADKAR change framework …

Exploring The Relationship Between Burnout, Professional Fulfillment, And Individual And Organizational Factors In Nurse Managers Across Ambulatory And Inpatient Settings, Yulia Romazanova Lopez

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Nurse managers play a vital role in the functioning and stability of healthcare systems, yet their well-being remains an underexplored area of research. The COVID-19 pandemic brought renewed attention to occupational burnout, including in nursing leadership, where nurse managers reported high levels of stress, emotional exhaustion, and organizational strain. While the literature on burnout has grown rapidly in recent years, there is limited research that addresses what comes next, what sustains nurse managers in their roles and how organizations might foster their long-term well-being and engagement. This dissertation compendium explores professional fulfillment (PF) as a proactive and constructive lens for …

Nurse Retention Through Mentorship, Leah Lodato, Campbell Wroblewski, Sarah Endre, Annika Eldred

SPARK Symposium Presentations

High turnover rates contribute to staff shortages, increased workload, burnout, and a decline in patient care quality. Nurse retention can be incredibly costly, and it is estimated to cost $56,300 per every RN who leaves their job. For the average hospital, this can equate to roughly $3.9 to $5.8 million in losses per year.” (2024 NSI National Healthcare Retention and RN Staffing Report). Our initiative focuses on implementing a structured mentorship program for new graduate nurses at Vanderbilt’s 6 East Med-Surg unit. By pairing new nurses with experienced mentors, the program aims to improve job satisfaction, provide professional …

Preventing Nurse Burnout In The Trauma Icu, Annelise Wilson, Samantha Pendleton, Hailey Dowd

SPARK Symposium Presentations

This change project identifies that nurse burnout is a prevalent problem within the healthcare setting, specifically with nurses working in a critical care environment. Burnout can be described as a negative outcome resulting in exhaustion (emotional, mental, physical) due to stress. The population focused on is the nursing staff on the trauma intensive care unit at VUMC. The proposed recommendation for change is to have a mandatory resource nurse on every shift. Essentially, this nurse is one who has no patients and can be utilized to fill in for breaks and perform anything under the nurse's scope of practice when …

Recognizing And Responding To Moral Distress: Using Transformational Leadership To Increase Nurse Leader Thriving, Miriam Dowling-Schmitt

DNP Scholarly Projects

Background: Moral distress, burnout, and compassion fatigue in acute care nurses has increased significantly since the Covid-19 pandemic and has been associated with high levels of nursing turnover and increased costs to healthcare systems. Nurse leaders at the study organization had never received education on recognizing and responding to moral distress. Nursing engagement scores were low at the study organization in the areas of leadership support and well-being investment in nurses.

Problem Description: Between 2017 and 2021 job satisfaction for nurses with direct patient care responsibilities decreased in 20 of 21 categories according to the Bureau of Health Workforce. High …

The Impact Of Code Lavender On Compassion Fatigue And Burnout Of Pediatric Bedside Staff, Sara L. Castle

DNP Projects

Background: Compassion fatigue is a significant problem in healthcare that can impact staff retention, job satisfaction, and patient outcomes. Code Lavender combats compassion fatigue by serving as a crisis intervention tool using evidence-based relaxation techniques, paired with increased support from Leadership.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to evaluate the impact of Code Lavender on reported levels of compassion fatigue and burnout amongst pediatric bedside staff working on a 12-bed progressive care unit at a Children’s Hospital in a large Academic Medical Center.

Method: This study employed a pilot evaluation design, consisting of pre- and post-surveys utilizing questions from …

Evaluation Of A Brief Mindfulness-Based Intervention Of Work-Related Stress, Job Satisfaction, Retention, And Quality Care: A Quality Improvement (Qi) Project, Laura M. Bragg

DNP Projects

Burnout among advanced practice providers (APPs) remains a significant concern nationally and within the University of Kentucky Healthcare system, with post-COVID evidence showing persistently elevated stress and emotional exhaustion. This quality improvement (QI) project implemented and evaluated a brief, app-based mindfulness intervention using the Headspace “Learn the Basics of Meditation” program for work-related stress, job satisfaction, mindfulness, and retention intentions among APPs. A one-group pre-post design was implemented, with 45 APPs completing the pre-intervention survey and four completing both the pre- and post-intervention surveys. Although no statistically significant improvements were observed, nonsignificant decreases in emotional exhaustion, fatigue, and turnover intention …

A Conceptual Model Of Organizational Compassion In Healthcare, Rachel Thienprayoon, Eli Awtrey, Teresa Pestian, Beth A. Lown, Naomi Winick, Jason Kanov

Journal of Wellness

Introduction: In healthcare, while the suffering of patients is often evident, the suffering of clinicians receives less focus. Some sources of clinician distress are directly related to constant exposure to patient suffering, but others are caused by the health care system, and thus potentially preventable. Looking at clinician suffering through the lens of compassion fosters a new paradigm of individual, team, and organizational capabilities, and moves the responsibility to alleviate this suffering from the individual onto the organization and team. Yet research into the impact of organizational compassion in healthcare has been extremely limited.

Approach: Our conceptual model of organizational …

Coping Strategies And Stress Of The Undergraduate Nursing Student In The Clinical Setting: An Evidence Based Practice Quantitative Study, Ashley Calverley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The assessment of perceived stress and coping behaviors related to first-semester clinical might benefit students in nursing education. The assessment of most common coping behaviors and perceived stress related to the clinical setting is essential due to difference in personalities, learning abilities, and coping behaviors among nursing students today. Previous research has suggested the initial clinical period results in adverse outcomes, such as poor academic performance, elevated burnout levels, and diminished personal well-being. These factors are detrimental to academic success in nursing programs. Evidence supports that helping students develop positive stress/coping abilities will aid in adapting in both the academic …

Organizational Methods Of Reducing Burnout: The Impact Of Self-Rostering On Work-Life-Integration, Cory Authement

MSN Capstone Projects

With burnout being at an all-time high, organizations must find new ways to prioritize staff wellbeing and promote work-life balance. According to the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) turnover in emergency departments ranges from 15-30% within the first year of nursing, and 43% within the first three years (Roncallo et al., 2020). These turnover rates cost a 300-bed facility approximately four million dollars in annual expenditure (Hesse, 2016). This level of loss and expenditure is unsustainable for the future of nursing and diverts resources away from our patients.

In recent studies, it was shown that burnout leads to difficulties for nurses …

Implementation Of Coping Strategies For Compassion Fatigue Through Counseling, Caleb R. Turner

MSN Capstone Projects

Many healthcare organizations are struggling to retain nurses due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding common reasons for decreased retention in nursing begins with evaluating job satisfaction and how it can be affected (Cuartero-Castañer, 2021). Compassion Fatigue (CF) and Burnout (BO) are two leading causes of decreased job satisfaction (Compassion Satisfaction (CS)). The Professional Quality of Life Scale (PROQoL) (see Appendix C) is designed to identify individuals at higher risk of CF and BO. Using this scale in conjunction with the Peer-Support coaches in the hospital setting allows nurses to have conversations and communicate effectively with coaches trained to have …

Workplace Violence In Emergency Departments, Education And De-Escalation Training: A Benchmark Study, Summer Block

MSN Capstone Projects

Most people do not go to work and fear being assaulted or harassed daily. However, for emergency nurses in this county that is exactly what it has come to. Up to 96% of emergency department nurses state they have been verbally abused. This entails name calling, verbal threats, being shouted at and being sworn at. Anywhere from 25% to 60% of these nurses have had to face physical assaults while on the job. (Al-Aadi, 2020; Copeland & Henry, 2017; Grinberg, 2022; Li et al., 2019; McDermid et al., 2019). Physical assaults can include being spit on, slapped, punched, kicked, choked, …

Unit-Based Onboarding Program For New Graduates On A Medical-Surgical Unit, Racquel A. Brewster

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nurse turnover is prevalent among new graduate nurses. Many new graduate nurses feel unsupported by their peers, lack self-confidence, or feel overburdened due to the workload assigned to them. New graduate nurses with support systems are more likely to stay with an organization. Research suggests the creation of a supportive environment for new graduate nurses to help increase nurse retention in this demographic. A unit-based transition onboarding program was launched to create a supportive environment to help retain new graduate nurses on a medical-surgical unit. New graduate nurses with at least 1 to 3 years of experience completed a Likert-type …

Using Drama Therapy To Foster Peer Support Among Nurse Leaders, Chyela Rowe

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This study explored the use of drama therapy to support the social-emotional experiences of nurse leaders at a mid-sized regional hospital system in the Southeastern United States. Nurse leaders have experienced profound changes to their work environments in recent years and burnout has been at an all-time high among healthcare workers globally. Organizational supports for nurses and nurse leaders are both inadequate to meet the needs and under-resourced. The research questions explored 1) whether the drama therapy peer support initiative improved outcomes and 2) whether there was a significant relationship between measures, and 3) what nurse leaders described as facilitators …

Peer-Supervision Of Nursing Professionals: A Shield Against Burnout, Kyle Gamache, Sarah Gamache, Joseph Robillard

Journal of Wellness

Introduction: Burnout is a major risk in healthcare professions and is a significant contributor to the current nursing shortage. Strategies to combat burnout of healthcare professionals are in desperate need. The purpose of this project is to introduce the clinical peer supervision model as a method to alleviate burnout in nursing professionals.

Approach: Eight nurses from in-patient settings participated in a peer-supervision support group, modeled after existing European nursing and mental health provider-support protocols. To assess the effect of this intervention, qualitative data analysis was conducted on the transcripts of session and the results described. All participants reported statistically high …

Examining The Impact Of De-Escalation Training Among Emergency Department Nurses, Jonathan Recchi, Jeffrey N. Doucette, Janice E. Hawkins

College of Health Sciences Posters

Workplace violence is a growing concern for US nurses, especially in the context of COVID-19 and patient incivility. De-escalation training can help mitigate high-risk incidents, but its psychological benefits are not well understood. This study aimed to determine if de-escalation training for emergency department nurses provided psychological benefit. This pre-experimental pre-test, post-test study evaluated nurse confidence in coping with patient aggression, caregiver resiliency, professional quality of life, and intention to stay with the organization. Participants completed a pretest survey, attended a two-hour verbal de-escalation training via zoom, and then completed the posttest survey. The study showed that attending the two-hour …

Understanding Modern Drivers Of The Employee Experience In Healthcare, Antonio Pangallo, Tim Atwell, Kristi Roe, Adrienne Boissy

Patient Experience Journal

Employee engagement has been considered the guiding metric to convey the health, loyalty, and performance of the healthcare workforce. However, the pandemic created new challenges and stimulated deeper conversations around remote work, systemic racism, inclusivity, trust, well-being, and mental illness, which calls into question whether engagement alone is enough. Using an employee experience model deployed in other industries, we identified key drivers of six employee experience (EX) outcomes. We conducted a panel study with close to 5,000 nurses and physicians to identify and prioritize current key drivers specific to the healthcare employee experience. Relative weights analyses suggest that being treated …

The Relationship Between Perceived Support And Post Traumatic Growth Among Nurses During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Anna Nieman

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background: Nurses continue to experience significant challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, putting them at risk of occupational stress, burnout, and turnover. The post-traumatic growth model focuses on growth and knowledge that comes from experiences of stress and trauma.

Aim: Identify post-traumatic growth (PTG) in a population of nurses affected by the COVID 19 pandemic.

Method: PTG was measured by the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory, a 21-item questionnaire with five factors: relating to others, new possibilities, appreciation of life, personal strength, and spiritual change. Participants (n=22) responded on a 6-point Likert scale, 0 for no change and 5 for great degree …

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction To Decrease Burnout In Emergency Nurses: A Quality Improvement Project At An Academic Medical Center, Desireé M. Mccue

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Nursing burnout, categorized by increased emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DE), or decreased personal achievement (PA), is rising in the United States. Emergency Department (ED) nurses at an academic medical center in the western United States experience burnout related to workplace violence and trauma exposure exacerbated by a global pandemic. Burnout can lead to adverse health impacts for nurses, increased institutional costs, and adverse patient outcomes.

Improving mindfulness or awareness of the present can reduce burnout in ED nurses. A mindfulness pilot project was conducted with staff nurses (n=20) and nurse leaders (n=4) in the ED. Participants attended Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction …

Predictive Factors In Nurse Retention: The Association Of Authentic Leadership, Nurse Leader Caring Behaviors, And Burnout In Novice Nurse Retention, April M. Novotny

PhD in Organizational Leadership

The demand for healthcare services in the United States is expected to dramatically increase in the coming decades. To meet the growing demand, a healthy workforce of nurses is necessary. In response to the identified problem of novice nurse retention, the researcher examined the concepts of authentic leadership, leadership caring behaviors, and burnout to determine the impact of these factors on intent to stay within an organization for novice nurses with less than 1 year of experience at a large community hospital. The study findings demonstrate a statistically significant correlation between the factors of authentic leadership, leader caring behaviors, burnout, …

Communicating Comfort In Crisis: A Literature Review On Overcoming The Emergency Room Environment To Foster The Nurse-Patient Relationship, Faith G. Davenport

Senior Honors Theses

The average emergency room patient is not receiving the compassionate nurse-patient communication that patients experience on other hospital floors. Fewer positive nurse-patient interactions prompt patients to state that they feel uncomforted and dissatisfied on hospital exit surveys, inciting hospital management to investigate how to reverse this trend to retain their federal funding. Emergency room nurses cite multiple barriers inherent in their work environment that prevent them from building rapport with their patients, including a layout not conducive to private conversations, strict time constraints, and a fluctuating workload. Working for a prolonged period under these conditions is driving many nurses to …

Tackling Burnout: Investing In Nurse Managers To Secure The Future Of Nursing, Enhance Manager Effectiveness, And Support High Quality Patient Care, Corey French

DNP Scholarly Projects

Background: Burnout is a widespread, pervasive issue the healthcare industry. Many efforts related to burnout reduction have been focused on front line caregivers but there is continued opportunity to address burnout in leadership. The global aim of this quality improvement project was to reduce burnout among the nursing leadership team at a large, academic medical center in the greater Boston area.

Problem Description: A preliminary survey was completed to assess for the presence of burnout within the leadership team. Results revealed that more than half of the nurse leaders surveyed were experiencing burnout at least 50% of the time. This …

Professional Quality Of Life Indicators And Turnover Intention In Forensic Nurses, Leigh Anne Meyer

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

Background/Significance: Significant barriers to forensic nurse workforce development exist, affecting patient access to care. Retention of forensic nurses is a persistent problem. Turn-over of forensic nurses can be attributed to many factors related to professional quality of life, including compassion satisfaction (CS), burnout (BO) and secondary traumatic stress (STS).

Methods: A convenience sample of forensic nurse program coordinators was used to identify the effect of an educational session on professional quality of life and strategies for reducing stressors within the role on ProQOL-5 and TIS-6 scores using a pre- post-test quasi-experimental survey design. Correlation between professional quality of life indicators …

Burnout And Fatigue: A Potential Downside Of The Critical Care Nursing Profession, Samantha L. Ford

MSN Capstone Projects

Studies show that burnout and fatigue increase healthcare cost and decreases organizational profit due to increased rates of employee turnover, decreased employee satisfaction, a decrease in the quality of care provided to patients, and the development of a toxic work environment. The three principal factors of job-related burnout and fatigue will be addressed within the context of this paper including emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment.

Critical care nurses suffer from feeling emotionally depleted to the point they feel as though they can no longer give anymore of themselves to the patients they care for, which is a result of …

Effect Of A Self-Care And Self-Awareness Education Program On Resilience To Burnout And Depression In Clinically Experienced Nursing Students, Andrew Taylor

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose was to examine the effect of a self-care educational intervention on nursing student resilience and thus the potential for compassion fatigue, depersonalization, burnout, depression, and inadequate self-care. A one-group pretest-posttest research design was applied to a convenience sample of 104 nursing students near the end of their last semester in a baccalaureate nursing program. The measurements were demographics, a psychometric resilience scale, program evaluation, and reflection question. The intervention was a standardized, intensive 30 min training program on the high degree of stress and burnout nurses face and the core self-care methods that can promote resilience to these …