Parenting Without Penalty: Paid Parental Leave as a Boundary-Management Strategy for Nursing Workforce Sustainability.

Aim(s): To demonstrate, through an integrative theoretical synthesis, how fully paid parental leave functions as a boundary-management strategy that enhances nurse well-being and retention; thereby supporting sustainable workforce capacity.

Design: Discursive paper.

Methods: Directed literature synthesis (2010-2025) across nursing, organisational psychology, labour economics and health-policy databases; thematic mapping of findings to organisational support theory, ethics-of-care theory and role theory; cross-case comparison of four national leave frameworks.

Results: Paid, discretionary leave raises perceived organisational support and predicts lower turnover intention. Leave is framed as moral reciprocity and restores both relational energy and capacity for job satisfaction. Extended, clearly sign-posted leave reduces time- and strain-based work-family conflict, enabling role enrichment on return. Implementation rests on four structural interventions: leadership endorsement, streamlined processes, guaranteed staffing back-fill and phased return-to-work options.

Conclusion: Paid parental leave is a strategic, theory-grounded intervention that safeguards nurses' dual identities, amplifies organisational commitment and ultimately fortifies patient care quality.

Implications For The Profession And/or Patient Care: Embedding usable, fully paid leave normalises caregiving, reduces burnout triggers and stabilises staffing to promote nurse retention, continuity of care and positive patient outcomes.

Impact: What problem did the study address? Global nurse turnover driven by unmanageable work-family conflict and inadequate leave usability. What were the main findings? Generous, well-implemented leave improves perceived support, relational energy and retention; four structural interventions maximize the benefits of paid parental leave for nurse-parents, patients, organizations, and the nursing workforce. Where and on whom will the research have an impact? Onurse leaders, HR policymakers and health-system executives striving to stem workforce attrition and on patient populations reliant on stable, experienced nursing teams.

Reporting Method: None (discursive).

Patient Or Public Contribution: This study did not include patient or public involvement in its design, conduct or reporting.