Impact of nurses' perceptions of work environment and communication satisfaction on their intention to quit

Aim This study examines the association of nurses' perception of their work environment and communication satisfaction with their intention to quit. Method The implementation part of the study was conducted with nurses working in a public hospital in the city of Burdur, Turkey. Data were collected in January 2017 from 175 participants and then assessed. Results The analysis showed that perceptions of the work environment and communication satisfaction taken together explain the total variance of the intention to quit. While participants' perceptions of the work environment become increasingly positive, their communication satisfaction increases and their intention to quit decreases. Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that making improvements to the nursing work environment and nurses' communication satisfaction will decrease their intention to quit. SUMMARY STATEMENT What is already known about this topic? Improving the work environment and communication satisfaction perceptions of nurses reduce their intention to leave. There is limited evidence of a relationship among the work environment, communication satisfaction, and the intention to quit. What this paper adds? The work environment and communication satisfaction are significantly associated with the intention to quit. As perception of the work environment become increasingly positive, perception of the communication satisfaction increases. Although many studies have implied that nurses are very likely to quit their jobs, this study shows that the intention to quit among nurses is actually low. The implications of this paper: Improving the work environment and communication satisfaction perceptions of nurses will reduce their intention to leave. Clear and transparent organizational policies are needed to integrate nurses into the aims of the organization. More efficient feedback mechanisms should therefore be established.