Factors associated with newly graduated nurses' work readiness during a pandemic: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Newly graduated nurses may experience reality shock and leave the career early, if not adequately prepared. The pandemic has significantly impacted nursing education, clinical placements, working conditions and employment opportunities, leaving newly graduated nurses' work readiness unknown.

Aim: To investigate the work readiness and its associated factors of newly graduated nurses who studied and graduated during a pandemic.

Design: A descriptive, cross-sectional correlational study design was employed.

Settings: The study was conducted at a large public health service in Victoria, Australia.

Participants: Newly graduated registered nurses who studied during the pandemic and graduated between January 2022 and June 2023 (N = 206).

Methods: Participants were recruited between November 2022 and June 2023. Participants' self-perceived work readiness was measured using the Work Readiness Scale for Graduate Nurses, covering personal work characteristics, work competence, social intelligence and organisational acumen. Pearson correlation, multiple regression and hierarchical logistic regression analysis were applied to test the relationship between explanatory variables and participants' work readiness.

Results: Mean (SD) values were 50.7 (14.6) for personal work characteristics, 100.5 (18.8) for work competence, and 58.2 (12.4) for social intelligence. Median (IQR) for organisational acumen was 145.5 (18.0). Prior Australian registered nurse or enrolled nurse experience significantly predicted personal work characteristics (β = 0.16, p = 0.037), while previous overseas registered nurse experience significantly predicted work competence (β = 0.14, p = 0.049). Participants who were native-English speakers had a significantly lower work competence (β = -0.15, p = 0.032). Being a female (p = 0.002, 95 % CI = 1.75, 13.21) and the length of a final clinical placement (p = 0.033, 95 % CI = 1.02, 1.59) significantly predicted organisational acumen.

Conclusion: Despite challenges encountered during the pandemic, participants reported a relatively high self-perceived work readiness. Influencing factors include individual characteristics, clinical placement experiences, and previous healthcare employment.

Keywords: Graduate nurses; Health workforce; Nurse education; Pandemic; Work readiness.