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Background. Internationally, nursing is facing a variety of challenges including changes in health systems, an ageing workforce and escalating shortages of Registered Nurses. New Zealand is no exception. Here as elsewhere these challenges are taking their toll on the resources and demands of hospital environments, on the health and well‐being of nurses themselves and most certainly on the people for whom they care. In the United States of America (USA), three aspects of the nursing work environment – autonomy, control and nurse–physician relations – have been identified as linked to staff retention, levels of staff burnout and needlestick injury, as well as to a range of patient outcomes.

Aim. To examine the New Zealand nursing situation and to see whether aspects of the work environment are associated with health status.

Methods. A total of 225 Registered Nurses in a general hospital completed the …