Early career nurses with fewer supportive peers for safe patient handling are likely to quit.

This prospective study observed turnover during 1 year at a community hospital in Oregon (n = 39). The study tested whether nurses who at baseline nominated fewer peers as sources of safe patient handling support were more likely to quit than nurses with more supportive peers. Six nurses with tenure under 2 years left their positions. Nurses who quit reported half as many co-workers as sources of support relative to nurses who remained employed, and each additional peer nomination reduced the risk of turnover by 15%. Further research should establish the contribution of peer safety support reducing turnover among recent hires.