Purpose
This study was conducted to identify the factors influencing nurses’ intention to stay after coming back from parental leave.
Methods
This was a descriptive cross-sectional study. The participants were 175 female nurses working in hospitals with over 300 beds and returning after three months of parental leave. Data were analyzed using independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and stepwise multiple regression.
Results
There were significant differences in intention to stay by age (t=2.65, p<.001) and position (t=-2.23, p=.027). Intention to stay was positively correlated with social support (r=.24, p<.001) and self-efficacy (r=.42, p<.001), and negatively correlated with work-family balance conflict (r=-.21, p=.004). Factors influencing intention to stay were self-efficacy (β=.94, p<.001) and work-family balance conflict (β=-.49, p=.005), with an explanatory power of 20%.
Conclusion
The findings allow for proposing that increasing nurses’ intention to stay may require self-efficacy improvements to enable nurses to adjust to their work environment, and hospitals should provide nurses with institutional support in order to reduce nurses’ work-family conflicts.

Citations

• Buying Time: Maternity Leave Policies and Critical Care Nurses’ Return to Work
  Adrianna Lorraine Watson, Daluchukwu Megwalu Tapp, Chelsey Young, Saydie Holyoak, Grace Houston, Brooklynn Nelson, Ashlynn Wood, Gabriela Marquez
  American Journal of Critical Care.2026; 35(2): 128.     CrossRef
• Parenting Without Penalty: Paid Parental Leave as a Boundary‐Management Strategy for Nursing Workforce Sustainability
  Adrianna Watson
  Journal of Advanced Nursing.2025;[Epub]     CrossRef