[Patients' view of nursing care: a literature review]

To know patients'vision about nursing care, to explore what the patient perceives and expresses on the care of nursing and to identify which are the potential areas for improvement.

A narrative review was conducted in which a synthesis of the information, a codification and a thematic analysis of primary studies were carried out in order to categorize the emerging themes of the reviewed literature. For this purpose, a search was conducted in the databases CINAHL, CUIDEN, MEDLINE and Cochrane Library, from 1990 to 2011.

Seven principal categories were identified: personal qualities of the nurse, individualized care, affective Implication, communication skills, "I am in good hands", knowledge and technical skills and the role of the nurse.

From the patients' statements, positive aspects could be extracted about nursing care but also different ideas were identified that should be modified. It is important to include regularly in practice patients' views of the care that they receive, since they can better evaluate the reality of the nurse role.

To provide a holistic and individualized care to the person, it is necessary to include her vision about the received care. This is the way to evaluate the quality of the care and to verify whether health care assistance corresponds with users' demands.