Only few studies have examined the preceptor training courses and their effects on clinical teaching behaviors (CTBs) of preceptors. This study investigated preceptors’ experiences in educating new graduate nurses and the effect they had on clinical teaching behavior (CTB) based on whether they participated in a preceptor training program. A descriptive online survey method was used, and the participants included 180 registered nurses who were preceptors. The Clinical Teaching Behavior Inventory (CTBI-22) was used, and perceptions of teaching experiences were measured by six items. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression. Preceptors working at general hospitals or hospitals were less likely to have participated in a preceptor training program than those working at tertiary hospitals. The overall mean score of CTB was 89.30, and “guiding inter-professional communication” showed the lowest mean score. Positive perceptions of preceptorship experiences were positively related with CTB, and the number of precepting experiences affected CTB only for nurses having undergone preceptor training courses. The use of role-playing as a method in training courses positively affected preceptors’ CTB. These findings suggest that preceptors need support from nurse managers and colleagues, and preceptor training programs should be developed.

To analyse the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and examine its related factors among nurses who worked during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic in Daegu, South Korea. Nurses are a high‐risk population for PTSD, especially during the COVID‐19 pandemic. This study was conducted to identify the nursing work environmental factors that should be addressed to reduce PTSD. Using a cross‐sectional design, 365 nurses were enrolled. Their characteristics (intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational, and COVID‐19‐related) and PTSD Checklist‐5 scores were analysed. The average PTSD score was 14.98 ± 15.94, and 16.5% of the participants had a high risk of PTSD. Nurses were more likely to have PTSD if they were married (odds ratio = 3.02, p = .013) and when nurse managers' abilities, leadership, and support of nurses were low (odds ratio = 3.81, p < .001). The nursing work environment was found to be associated with PTSD. Therefore, interventions are necessary to increase nurse managers' abilities, leadership, and support for nurses to reduce the risk of PTSD among nurses. Effective professional and social support and interventions to improve nurse managers' abilities, leadership, and support of nurses are needed to reduce PTSD.

Nurse staffing is an important factor influencing patient health outcomes. This study aimed to analyze the effects of nurse staffing on patient health outcomes, such as length of stay, mortality within 30 days of hospitalization, and readmission within 7 days of discharge, in acute care hospitals in Korea. Data from the first quarter of 2018 were collected using public and inpatient sample data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. The data of 46,196 patients admitted to 536 general wards of acute care hospitals were analyzed. A multilevel logistic analysis was performed for the patients’ mortality and early readmission, and a multilevel zero-truncated negative binomial analysis was performed for the length of stay. The average length of stay in acute care hospitals was 6.54 ± 6.03 days, the mortality rate was 1.1%, and the early readmission rate was 7.1%. As the nurse staffing level increased, the length of stay and number of early readmissions were likely to decrease. It can be concluded that interventions to improve nurse staffing are required; for example, a policy that compels medical institutions to comply with Korea’s medical law standards should be implemented. Additionally, continuous research and interventions are needed to establish an appropriate nurse staffing level according to patient severity.

Background: A good nursing work environment is a key determinant of patient safety. In 2018, the Korean government introduced the Nurse Working Conditions Improvement Policy (NWCIP), accompanied by a revision of the nurse staffing grade calculation method. Under this policy, hospitals with revenue growth due to upward adjustments in nurse staffing grade were recommended to allocate revenue growth for improving nurses’ working conditions. Objective: To evaluate whether funding under the NWCIP, aimed at improving nurses’ working conditions, is associated with changes in patient outcomes. Methods: A quasiexperimental study was conducted using National Health Insurance claims data from 198,318 adult inpatients across 99 general hospitals. After confirming the parallel trends assumption, a difference‐in‐differences approach was used to evaluate the policy’s effect. Patient outcomes were compared between the first quarters of 2018 (baseline) and 2019 (postimplementation). Hospitals were categorized into an intervention group (those that received nurses’ working conditions improvement fund) and a comparison group (those that did not). Outcomes included in‐hospital mortality, 7‐day readmission, and length of stay. Among the 99 hospitals, 60 were assigned to the intervention group and 39 to the comparison group. Results: According to difference‐in‐differences analysis, the intervention group showed a 19% increase in 7‐day readmission (adjusted odds ratio = 1.19; 95% confidence interval: 1.09–1.29; p < 0.001) and a 5% decrease in length of stay (adjusted incidence rate ratio = 0.95; 95% confidence interval: 0.92–0.97; p < 0.001), with no significant change in in‐hospital mortality. Conclusions: General hospitals subject to the NWCIP did not show improved patient outcomes: They had a higher risk of readmission despite a shorter length of stay. Implications for Nursing Management: The use of revenue growth to improve nurses’ working conditions should be mandated rather than recommended, prioritizing high‐impact staffing investments, such as hiring additional nurses, most directly linked to patient outcomes.

Background/Objectives: Early turnover among new graduate nurses remains challenging in South Korea. This study examined how socialisation factors—based on Scott et al.’s transition model and Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory—are associated with early retention at the first hospital of employment among new graduate nurses. Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study analysed secondary data from the Graduate Occupational Mobility Survey (GOMS), a nationally representative dataset of college and university graduates in Korea, collected using a stratified multi-stage sampling method. The study included 602 new graduate nurses from the 2017–2019 datasets who had worked as nurses at their first hospital of employment. Anticipatory socialisation factors included personal and educational characteristics. Organisational socialisation factors referred to workplace-related characteristics of the first hospital, including motivational factors and hygiene factors. The outcome variable was early retention. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with early retention. Results: A total of 68.6% of nurses remained in their first hospital employment. Retention was more likely among nurses whose high school, nursing school, and first hospital were in the same region (p = 0.019), those employed in Seoul (p < 0.001), and those working in larger hospitals (p < 0.001). Retention was also associated with satisfaction with autonomy and authority (p = 0.013). Conversely, lower retention was observed among nurses who were dissatisfied with interpersonal relationships (p < 0.001) and those who reported satisfaction with growth opportunities (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Targeted strategies that support new graduate nurses during their transition are essential. Aligning education-to-employment regions and strengthening workplace conditions may enhance early retention.