The current state of nurse engagement

For its 2023 National Nursing Engagement Report, PRC surveyed 1,923 RNs from 37 hospitals across the United States. The nurses answered 34 questions on nurse quality indicators, engagement, burnout, and retention.

Overall, 45.1% of nurses reported being "fully engaged" with their work while 40.5% said they were "engaged," and 14.4% said they were "unengaged."

According to PRC, fully engaged nurses "are emotionally and intellectually connected to their hospitals" and invested in their success. In comparison, engaged nurses typically "play it safe" within their jobs, and unengaged nurses only do the bare minimum.

Levels of engagement among nurses varied by generation, shift time, and practice setting. Millennial, night shift, and ED nurses were more likely to report being unengaged compared to other groups.

There was also a decline in engagement among nurses who were only one or two years into their career. Only 38.3% of nurses in this group were fully engaged at work, which PRC said mirror turnover rates in years one to three of a nurse's career. Many of these nurses are at risk of not only leaving their organizations, but also leaving the profession as a whole.

How low engagement impacts nurses and organizations

According to PRC, there are three key drivers of nurse engagement:

1.       Autonomy: Nurses who feel like they are active participants in decision making and that their opinions are valued are more likely to be fully engaged.

2.       RN to RN teamwork and collaboration: Nurses who feel like they are part of a supportive team are more likely to be fully engaged.

3.       Leadership access and responsiveness: Nurses who trust their leadership and feel like leadership is accessible to them are more likely to be fully engaged.

When nurses are unengaged, they increase their risk of burnout. Among unengaged nurses, 41.9% said they were burned out. In comparison, only 7.6% of fully engaged and 14.9% of engaged nurses said they were burned out.

Unengaged nurses are also more likely to want to leave their organizations within the next few years. Only 50.7% of unengaged nurses said they intend to continue working at their hospital for at least two more years compared to over 80% of engaged and fully engaged nurses.

To get more insights into nurse engagement and burnout, check out these Advisory Board resources:

• 4 ways to retain early career nurses
• The characteristics of a flexible nursing workforce
• Recommendations for stabilizing the RN workforce
• Top-of-license nursing: Overcome these 2 barriers
• How Allegheny Health Network's Blended Nursing Model Addresses Staffing Shortages

(Taylor, Becker's Clinical Leadership, 9/11; PRC National Nursing Engagement Report, accessed 9/12)