Administrative stressors and nursing job outcomes in Australian public and non-profit health care organisations

Abstract

Aims and objectives. The main aim of this study is to develop a path model to examine the effect of administrative stressors on nursing work outcomes in a sample of Australian public and non-profit nurses. Background. The implementation of managerial reform initiatives has negative consequences on work outcomes. However, less is known about the effects of these stressors in public and non-profit health care organisations. Design. An online, self-completion questionnaire was sent to a random sample of nurses, employed in nursing-related occupations. Participants. Useable surveys were received from 251 nurses. Methods. The path model was analysed using SmartPLS software (SmartPLS, Hamburg, Germany). Results. Public and non-profit nurses experienced time and resource administrative-related stressors (such as resource shortage and pay not as good as other people doing similar work). They relied on work-related social support to reduce the negative consequences. Resource stressors led to job dissatisfaction while time stressors led to psychological strain. Nursing staff who reported better psychological health reported higher job satisfaction and higher level of commitment towards their organisations. Conclusions. Context-specific administrative stressors have a negative impact on the work outcomes of public and non-profit nurses. Work-related social support mechanisms were found to mediate the negative consequences of administrative resourcing stressors on nursing job satisfaction. Relevance to clinical practice. Nursing managers have to be sympathetic and care for the negative experiences of nursing staff, especially when there is an increasing level of administrative expectations during organisational change. Senior management should take note of the stressors caused by the lack of resources such as information, staffing and resources, as these were found to lead to an increase in nurses seeking work-related social support from their peers and supervisors. Effective implementation of these strategies would lead to a nursing workforce, which has higher level of psychological health, job satisfaction and organisational commitment. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.