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Published on: January 15, 2017
Emergency Nurses' Perspectives: Factors Affecting Caring.
Carol L Enns1, Jo-Ann V Sawatzky1
1Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Caring is central to nursing, but emergency department (ED) environments with high patient acuity and staff shortages threaten caring behaviors. Lack of management support significantly hinders nurses from providing holistic, advocacy-focused care.
Area of Science:
- Nursing
- Healthcare Management
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Caring is a universal nursing concept.
- Higher patient acuity and staff shortages in emergency departments (EDs) may jeopardize caring behaviors.
- Understanding nurses' perspectives on caring is crucial for improving ED staffing and retention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the meaning of caring from the perspective of emergency nurses.
- To identify factors affecting caring in the ED practice environment.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative descriptive study.
- Semi-structured interviews with 17 emergency nurses in Manitoba, Canada.
- Thematic analysis of interview data.
Main Results:
- Advocacy and holistic care emerged as core themes of caring.
- Workload, time constraints, staffing, shift work, and lack of self-care impacted caring.
- Lack of management support was consistently identified as the primary barrier to caring.
Conclusions:
- Caring remains a unifying concept in nursing but is undermined by environmental factors in EDs.
- Fostering a supportive work environment is essential for holistic nursing care, job satisfaction, and nurse retention.
- Caring is fundamental to nursing practice, not secondary.
