Association between demographics and resilience - a cross-sectional study among nurses in Singapore.

Aim: To give an overview of the level of resilience among nurses in Singapore and to examine associations between various demographics variables and resilience level.

Background: The World Health Organization reported a global needs-based shortage of over 9 million nurses and midwives in 2013. Building resilience among nurses has been postulated as one of the ways to support and retain nurses in the profession.

Method: A self-reported questionnaire consisting of questions on demographics and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale CD-RISC 10 was used.

Results: Univariate analysis identified marital status, age group, years of experience in nursing, highest education qualification and job grade to have significant associations with resilience. During multivariate analysis, only marital status, age group, highest educational qualification and job grade remained significant. A strong association was found between highest educational qualification and resilience level; nurses with bachelor's or postgraduate degree were about three times more likely than nurses with only a general nursing certificate to be of moderate/high resilience.

Conclusion: The experience of life events (as exemplified by marital status, age and working experience) was associated with higher resilience levels.

Implications For Nursing Policy: There is a need for healthcare organizations and nurse leaders to develop programmes focusing on building resilience among younger and less experienced nurses. Nurses should also be supported in their pursuits for higher education, which will in turn lead to higher resilience, and consequently, retention of nurses within the profession and institution.