Survey on employment status regarding second careers for former head nurses

Abstract

　This study aimed to clarify the actual employment situation in the second careers of experienced head nurses.

　To conduct the survey, questionnaires were mailed to 1,236 hospitals, geriatric health facilities, geriatric welfare facilities and visiting nursing stations in A Prefecture (response rate: 19.7%). The mandatory retirement age is 60 years (57%) in many facilities, indicating that there are very limited workplaces where former head nurses work in nursing management positions at other facilities after retirement.

　Facilities employing former head nurses were significantly more likely than those that did not. Hospitals have been continuously employing former nurse managers from the viewpoint of “valuable internal resources” and “securing human resources.”

　In facilities where there are no experienced nurses, there is a tendency to be reluctant to hire nurses due to a lack of understanding of the role and abilities of head nurses.

　In order for former head nurses to be effectively utilized in their second careers, it is necessary to build a system that allows employers to correctly understand their abilities.