Nurses' work engagement practices in a multicultural hospital in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Employee engagement is the ability of employees to express themselves ‘physically, cognitively and emotionally during role performance’. Nurse employees comprise the largest workforce in healthcare. They spend a significant time caring for patients, they have a strong impact on patient experiences. Thus, in order to improve patient care experiences, nurse employees require positive work environments with the necessary factors that drive employee engagement. This study aimed to investigate current nurse engagement practices and the work-related aspects that impact engagement among nursing employees. The ultimate goal was to enable nursing management to identify the areas for continued sustainability and to improve gaps identified through appropriate implementation initiatives. The hospital is in the central part of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and consists of a multicultural population and the local Saudi nurses. The study population is nursing employees, employed for one year and longer within the organisation, and includes both genders between the ages of 18 to 60 years old. Simple random sampling was adopted using a sampling frame. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the sample of nurses from the hospital. Descriptive and inferential statistical tests were performed to analyse data using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 for Windows, while Ordered Probit regression was conducted using the Stata statistical program version 14 for Windows. This study showed the extent of nurses’ engagement using the selected constructs. Areas of strengths and weaknesses were identified. This study found that nurses were generally positive and passionate in their contribution to the organisation and connected in their work roles. This was established statistically and literature was also used to interpret the results. Respondents placed high importance on items that assessed the extent of nurses’ engagement and work-related factors. All the loadings in the eight dimensions measured were above 0.5, which shows significant correlation. In terms of organizational factors that impact nurse engagement, the estimates from the Ordered Probit regression showed that “feelings about the job” by employees had a statistically significant and positive influence on the employees’ or nurses’ “satisfaction about job aspects”. Results suggest the need to strengthen the identified areas in order to improve the nurses’ level of engagement.