The experiences of the agency registered nurse: An integrative literature review

Abstract

Aim: To examine experienced registered nurses' motivations for choosing agency work, their experiences and perceptions of agency nursing and how they meet their regulatory professional development obligations. Background: Agency registered nurses are employed by healthcare organizations to meet staffing shortfalls and contain costs. Methods: Using an integrative review framework, four databases (CINAHL, Medline, Embase and Scopus) were systematically searched between 2000 and 2017: study selection followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-analyses. Results: Our search identified 491 sources. From these, two primary qualitative sources were included in this review. Four themes were identified: orientation, allocation of the agency nurse, isolation in clinical practice and lack of education opportunities. Conclusion: Given the limited literature on agency nurses and how to support them, further research is required on this subject. Implications for Nursing Management: Support for agency nurses is necessary, so they can seamlessly integrate with the healthcare team to provide safe patient care. This review may assist managers to identify strategies to effectively engage and support agency registered nurses in the acute care nursing team. The gaps identified highlight the need for further research to explore agency nurses' motivations, and support needs to inform future strategic workforce planning.