Authors (including presenting author) :
Leung TY (1), Yeung PL (1), Liu LW(1), Lam CP (1), Tam M L (1), Wong SL (1),Chui ST (1)
Affiliation :
(1) Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital
Introduction :
Attract and retain staff has become more important than ever in Hospital Authority. Job satisfaction and level of burnout are the crucial factors influencing nurse turnover rate. To promote favorable working environment, a “Five-Day Work Week” program was implemented in July 2020 in a high-volume caseload colorectal surgical unit in Prince of Wales Hospital. Specialty nursing care in the unit was labor intensive. Overtime for handover and task accomplishment was commonly happened and the sick leave rate was high. Under the program, the shift structure was changed from six-day work to five-day work. The job routine of patient care was reengineered and different shift duties was set up in order to share the heavy workload during manpower overlapping period and increase working flexibility.
Objectives :
1) To improve the job satisfaction and personal well-being among the nursing staff
2) To enhance the quality of patient care in a colorectal unit
Methodology :
A quasi-experimental interventional study was conducted from July, 2020 to Jun, 2021. Total 25 nurses were recruited. An anonymous self-report questionnaire, which contained demographic data and two well-developed measurement tools for nurses’ burnout - Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and job satisfaction - Index of Work Satisfaction (IWS) was distributed before and after the program commenced. Nurses sick leave rate and a variety of quality patient care outcomes were measured.
Result & Outcome :
In the MBI assessment, the average score of staffs’ emotional exhaustion and depersonalization showed dramatically decreased. It implied the degree of burnout was improved after program implemented. For job satisfaction in IWS score, the mean scale score of overall level of satisfaction was increased from 4.22 to 4.31. A question concerning factors influencing nurses’ intention to leave, such as working schedule, workload and management showed remarkable decreased. The sick leave rate decreased by 52.6% and the time frame for starting stoma education was one day earlier than the traditional working shift pattern. To conclude, the Five-day Work Week working schedule had a very positive impact on nurses’ job satisfaction and personal health. The favorable working environment increased staff willingness to remain in their current employment.
