Nurse Retention in Saudi Arabia: A Scoping Review of Intent-To-Stay Determinants (2020–2025)

Vollständiger Abstract

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Background: Nurse retention is a major workforce concern in Saudi Arabia, where the health system depends heavily on an expatriate workforce and Saudization under Vision 2030 has intensified interest in retention. This scoping review aimed to map and synthesize the organisational, psychosocial, and demographic factors associated with nurses' intent to stay (ITS), with turnover intention/intention to leave used as an inverse indicator, in Saudi Arabian healthcare organisations. Methods: Following the Arksey and O'Malley framework as advanced by the Joanna Briggs Institute and reported per PRISMA-ScR, using the Population-Concept-Context framework, five databases (Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, CrossRef, Scopus, and OpenAlex) were searched for peer-reviewed empirical studies published from January 2020 to March 2025. After duplicate removal and independent two-reviewer screening, 14 studies were included; discrepancies were resolved by consensus. Results: Ten thematic determinant domains were identified. Job satisfaction, work-environment quality, and leadership style were most consistently associated with ITS across the 14 studies. Additional factors included compensation equity, workload and staffing adequacy, nationality and expatriate status, interprofessional communication, organisational commitment, and burnout. Across a predominantly cross-sectional base, job satisfaction was frequently an intervening variable linking structural conditions to retention outcomes. Conclusion: Strengthening retention may require multi-level approaches spanning leadership development, equitable remuneration, supportive work environments, manageable workloads, and professional advancement, aligned with Vision 2030.