The attrition levels of KwaZulu-natal nurses with specific reference to seeking employment opportunities in other countries and its implications on health services delivery within the province
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Date
2004
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Abstract
The purpose of the study was to examine attrition levels of KwaZulu-Natai nurses with specific reference to those that seek employment opportunities in other countries. *
The objectives of the study were to (a) examine the attrition levels of KwaZulu- Natal nurses in relation to seeking employment opportunities in other countries, (b) identify the factors influencing the KwaZulu-Natal nurses to seek employment opportunities in other countries, (c) examine the demand versus the supply of nurses through the training programmes supported by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Department of Health, (d) determine the effects of attrition on the health care service delivery within the Province of KwaZulu-Natal, (e) examine the role-played by the Department of Health in controlling the attrition rate, and (g) examine the role-played by the South African Nursing Council as the watchdog of the public in controlling such attrition.
The study sample consisted of 54 registered nurses, 9 Deputy Directors (Nursing) at health district levels, and the registrar of the South African Nursing Council. The results indicated that the attrition levels of KwaZulu-Nata nurses were high in that 1159 nurses resigned with the intention of seeking employment opportunities in other countries. The nurse training academic institutions could not cope with the replacement from the number of graduates that they produced within the same study period. That is, only 889 diplomates graduated, versus 1159 that left the country, excluding those that left the service due to natural attrition, for example, death resulting from HIV/AIDS. The main factors that contributed to the nurses to leave the province were poor salaries, poor working conditions, poor relationships either at work and within marriages. There was a remarkable decline in the standard of patient care due to the shortage of skilled nurses in clinical settings. Strategies to deal with the problem were still at the planning stage at the time of data collection, but one would say that those were the good plans that would contribute to resolving either the actual problem or it's effects on health care delivery. The study recommended amongst others, (a) improvement of salaries of nurses, (b) improvement of the conditions of service, (c) establishing a database for all nurses in the "diaspora", (d) creative contracts between the source and destination countries, (e) investing in education, and (f) intensifying the Employee Assistance Programmes.
Description
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Nursing Science at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2004.
Keywords
Nursing--Vocational guidance., Nurses--Employment.