Introduction : The shortage of nursing staff and the high turnover rate among nurses are among the key challenges faced by healthcare systems worldwide. Understanding the turnover intention of nurses can be an important step toward planning for the retention of human resources and improving the quality of nursing care. This study aims to determine the turnover intention among nurses working in the internal medicine, surgery, emergency, and intensive care units.

Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 1404 in four teaching hospitals affiliated with [Name of Medical University]. The study population consisted of all nurses working in the internal medicine, surgery, emergency, and intensive care units of these hospitals. The sampling method was multistage cluster sampling with proportional allocation, and a total of 1,275 nurses were selected as the sample. Data were collected through personal visits to various departments and using the Sishour (1982) turnover intention questionnaire. Data analysis was performed using Stata version 18. One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to compare turnover intention scores among different departments, with a significance level set at 0.05.

Results: The findings of this study showed that the average turnover intention score for the entire sample was 7.413±2.528, indicating a moderate to high level of intention. Moreover, no significant difference was found in the mean turnover intention scores of nurses between the internal medicine, surgery, emergency, and intensive care units (p = 0.113).

Discussion: Turnover intention, as a precursor to actual turnover, reflects an individual’s desire to leave an organization or profession and can be seen as a warning signal for reduced workforce retention. The findings of this study revealed that the turnover intention level among nurses in various hospital departments was moderate to high. Although no significant differences were found between departments, this result highlights the importance for healthcare managers and policymakers to prioritize nurse retention, regardless of the department in which nurses work.

Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, the turnover intention among nurses working in internal medicine, surgery, emergency, and intensive care units was evaluated to be moderate to high. This emphasizes the need for continuous monitoring of retention-related indicators and the design of preventive interventions to reduce turnover intention, regardless of the work setting.