Are ward sisters and charge nurses able to fulfil their role?

To investigate the self-reported duties carried out by sisters and charge nurses working on the wards and to assess the attitudes of these health care professionals towards their management role.

Questionnaire.

Sisters/charge nurses were allocated patients in addition to being in charge of their ward for, on average, half of their shifts each week. Most of them did not have time to complete their managerial duties, which included supporting and supervising other staff on patient care issues. More than 50 per cent of the sisters/charge nurses did not have the time to attend clinical supervision.

Sisters/charge nurses treat clinical care--both delivering it directly themselves and advising other staff on its delivery--as a higher priority than their managerial and administrative duties; lack of time is a barrier to the successful fulfilment of their role.