ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: Disaster nursing competencies and their willingness to participate are essential for the success of disaster relief nurses. This study investigates the correlations among emergency room and intensive care unit nurses' training needs, willingness to participate, achievement motivation and job satisfaction as well as their mutual influences on disaster relief efforts. METHODS: A convenience sampling cross-sectional study was conducted, where 488 emergency room and intensive care unit nurses from five hospitals in Taiwan participated (response rate: 84.4%). The relationships among the variables were verified using structural equation modelling. RESULTS: Training needs in disaster nursing were found to be positively correlated with willingness to participate and job satisfaction. Moreover, willingness to participate was found to be positively correlated with achievement motivation and job satisfaction. Achievement motivation was found to be positively correlated with job satisfaction. Furthermore, willingness to participate in disaster relief was found to indirectly mediate job satisfaction through achievement motivation. CONCLUSIONS: The fulfilment of training needs for disaster nursing and willingness to participate may have an impact on nurses' job satisfaction through the mediating effect of achievement motivation. Nurses' learning needs should be the foremost consideration in disaster nursing training to alleviate human resource shortages and improve disaster responses. These findings can serve as a reference for increasing preparedness training for nurses in disaster management. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Nurses substantially contribute to the progression of disaster relief and postdisaster reconstruction. Successful and effective disaster management relies on sufficient nurse responses and training preparedness. Nurses' willingness to participate and achievement motivation in disaster nursing can have an impact on their job satisfaction and alleviate distress for both themselves and patients for the purpose of disaster relief.