Abstract: Objective: To investigate the status of professional quality of life and work engagement among nurses in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and to analyze the influence of professional quality of life on work engagement. Methods: A convenient sample of 434 ICU nurses recruited from 14 tertiary grade A hospitals in Hunan were evaluated using the general information questionnaire, the Chinese version Professional Quality of Life Scale, and the Chinese version Utrecht Work Engagement Scale. Results: The mean scores of work engagement and the three dimensions of professional quality of life: compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress, among ICU nurses were 57.24±20.33, 28.62±7.85, 27.95±6.26, and 24.52±6.27, respectively. Work engagement was significantly and positively correlated with compassion satisfaction (r=0.751, P<0.01) as well as negatively correlated with burnout (r=-0.555, P<0.01), but not correlated with secondary traumatic stress (r=0.038, P>0.05). The overall professional quality of life can independently explain 49.5% variation of work engagement after controlling for demographic variables. Conclusion: In our study, the level of work engagement is moderate in ICU nurses. It is suggested that the overall professional quality of life can partially predict work engagement in this sample. The level of work engagement could be encouraged by improving the professional quality of life among ICU nurses, therefore, to increase quality of care.

Key words: ICU nurses; professional quality of life; work engagement