Indicators of Head Nurses' Span of Control and Its Relation to Staff Nurses' Job Involvement

Seleem, Doaa El Araby; Abo Gad, Reda Abdel Fatah; Ahmed El- Sayed, Karima; Sorour, Marwa Sameer

doi:10.21608/tsnj.2024.391525

Indicators of Head Nurses' Span of Control and Its Relation to Staff Nurses' Job Involvement

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Master student at Nursing administration, Faculty of Nursing, Tanta University

² Nursing specialist in El Santa Central Hospital

³ Professor of Nursing Administration, Faculty of Nursing, Tanta University

10.21608/tsnj.2024.391525

Abstract

Background: Span of control indicates that the head nurses need to meet the aims
of the healthcare organization through controlling nurses' behaviors in the efforts
to forecast nurses' productivity, resignation rates, and job involvement. Aim: to
assess the indicators of head nurses' span of control and its relation to staff nurses'
job involvement. Subjects and Method: Research design: A descriptive-
correlational research design was utilized to conduct this study. Setting: The
study was conducted at all departments of El Santa Central Hospital. Subjects:
All head nurses and 510 nurses working full time at El Santa Central
Hospital. Tools: Tool I: Span of Control Indicators Structured Questionnaire and
Tool II: Staff Nurses' Job Involvement Scale. Results: Related to overall span
characteristics. More than half (57.9%) of head nurses and about three-quarters
(72.5%) of staff nurses reported a narrow span of control. While, overall span of
control indicators over two-thirds (67.1%- 68.6 %) of head nurses and staff nurses
reported A low level of span of control that meant head nurses were capable of
growth. More than two-thirds (69.8%) of staff nurses had a high level of overall
job involvement. Conclusion: There was a highly significant positive correlation
between indicators of head nurses' span of control and staff nurses' job
involvement. Recommendation: Head nurses can use these findings to motivate
staff nurses to express their opinion and enhance their leadership competencies,
provide ongoing monitoring for staff nurses and evaluate their strengths and areas
needing improvement.