Preliminary report on nurse job satisfaction on wards for the elderly, mentally ill

The effect of Community Care Policies upon staffing levels within institutions is potentially problematic; wider job opportunities becoming available to nurses as community provision increases. The job satisfaction of nurses still working within institutions must, therefore, be an issue of importance in the maintenance of suitably qualified and experienced staff. This study examines the differing amounts of job satisfaction reported by a sample of 59 nurses all working on long-stay wards for the elderly, mentally ill; located within three different institutions. The results show that the measures selected for use have high content and face validity for this population. The effects of institutional and staff management are highlighted as being major influences upon the degree of job satisfaction.