Abstract
BACKGROUNDS: In China, emergency department (ED) nurses frequently face high turnover rates and emotional exhaustion, phenomena that are intensified by the demanding nature of their roles. While emotional exhaustion significantly influences nurses intention to leave, the potential mitigating effects of factors such as emotional support have not been thoroughly explored. PURPOSE: This study was designed to investigate the mediating role of emotional support between emotional exhaustion and turnover intention among ED nurses in China and to examine the factors of influence on turnover intention. METHODS: A cross-sectional research design was used to collect data from 427 ED nurses from different hospitals across China using convenience sampling. The research instruments used included the Emotional Support Scale, Emotional Exhaustion Scale, Self-Rated Mental Health Status Scale, and Turnover Intention Scale. RESULTS: The findings showed not proactively having chosen a career in nursing (β=0.096, p<.05), greater emotional exhaustion (β=0.318, p<.001), satisfactory economic status (β=-0.196, p<.001), better physical condition (β=-0.128, p<.05), and more emotional support (β=-0.092, p=.032) to correlate negatively with turnover intention and emotional support to mediate the relationship between emotional exhaustion and intention to leave (β=-0.095, Bootstrap 95% CI [-0.152, -0.046], p<.001), accounting, collectively, for 34.8% of the total effect (β=-0.273, Bootstrap 95% CI [-0.364, -0.175], p=.002). CONCLUSIONS: Enhancing emotional support reduces turnover intention by mitigating the effects of emotional exhaustion on ED nurses in China. Targeted interventions that bolster emotional support systems, together with strategies that address financial satisfaction and physical well-being, will be essential to enhancing both nursing staff retention and overall patient care quality in China's demanding health care environment.