Effect Of Employee Satisfaction On Nurse Retention At Pumwani Maternity Hospital In Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

This study was an attempt to determine the cause of the continued shortages of nurses which is a challenge being experienced in both developing and developed nations. In developed nations, the number of those joining this profession is declining day after day. It is also a big worry to the hospital management that some of the nurses are abandoning this profession and opting to join other professions. On the other hand, developing nations are not only experiencing shortages but also the massive migration of nurses abroad in search of greener pastures. This has caused huge financial losses and brain drain in most nations. This shortage has raised a big concern to the hospital management as to why this is happening. This study recognizes that a satisfied workforce will be highly productive as well as loyal to the organization and therefore will be willing to continue serving for longer periods. It is therefore in this reason that this study aimed at exploring how the levels of nurse satisfaction with various issues of human resource management was affecting their retention at Pumwani Maternity Hospital. The main purpose of this study was to provide empirical data on Pumwani Hospital, which the hospital management and other interested researchers can build on in strategizing on issues aimed at promoting employee retention. This study employed a descriptive research design, which aimed at establishing the nurse perception on effects of satisfaction on their retention. A sample size of 97 nurses serving at Pumwani Hospital was used. A questionnaire as well as observation was used as instruments of data collection. The data collected was analyzed through inferential statistics of regression and correlation analysis. Finally, this data was processed using Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) where the results indicated that there is a strong, direct and linear relationship between reward management, capacity building, working environment and employee retention. They account for a high value of 91.6% of the variance on retention. The results revealed that the highest predictor of nurse retention at Pumwani Hospital is capacity building with a Beta of 0.448, reward management a Beta value of 0.227 while working environment is the least predictor with a Beta value of 0.136. Therefore, this suggests that higher values of these variables will translate into higher levels of retention.