Nurses who perform moderate levels of exercise have a better quality of life because it enhances satisfaction, a new study finds.
Burnout wasn’t linked with physical activity, but other factors such as work environment and support received professionally may play more of a role in [quality of life](https://www.mcknights.com/news/staffing-agencies-linked-to-lowered-cms-quality-rating-in-nursing-homes/), authors of the study reported.
The [research](https://bmcnurs.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12912-025-02967-4) was published Wednesday in _BMC Nursing._
Investigators evaluated data from 430 nurses working for Hamad Medical Corp. in Qatar. The team collected data using an online survey and deployed metrics to gauge physical activity and quality of life. The team measured three metrics of quality of life, including compassion satisfaction, burnout and compassion fatigue. Of the nurses, 82.1% were women, and the average age was 43.3 years. Almost half of the participants said they had low physical activity levels, but most others completed moderate levels of exercise.
In addition to a link between moderate physical activity and better quality of life (especially compassion satisfaction, which is the positive feeling nurses get from helping others), the team found that burnout wasn’t connected with exercise. Age and work shift patterns were linked to working out moderately. In fact, moderate exercise was more common in slightly older nurses (in their mid-40s compared with earlier 40s, although those slightly younger exercised more) and those who worked eight-hour shifts (compared with nurses who completed 12-hour shifts).
Promoting moderate exercise to nurses via workplace programs and policies could improve their well-being and caregiving capacity, the authors wrote.
Exercising in Qatar tends to be low among residents. In one study, more than 60% of people who were aged 18 to 64 years did not engage in physical activity, the authors pointed out.
The researchers collected data during a five-month span, from December 2023 to April 2024.