A new approach in exploring satisfaction with nursing care by nurses themselves

To examine the level of satisfaction with nursing care from nurses' perspectives, as patients and/or as caregivers for hospitalised relatives.

Many studies that have examined patients' satisfaction with nursing care in Jordan and worldwide found high ratings of satisfaction with nursing care among patients. These ratings may be inflated because patients, as the recipients of care, are often unequipped to judge specific aspects of care, unless the patient is also a nurse.

A descriptive cross-sectional design was used. Data were collected using the Patients Satisfaction with Nursing Care Quality Questionnaire. The total sample size was 231 registered nurses from eight hospitals in Jordan. All participating nurses had either experienced hospitalisation for a minimum of 24 hr for themselves or as caregivers for one of their close relatives, currently or within the last year.

The average age of participants was 31.7 (SD = 0.40) years. Most of the participants were female with <10 years of work experience. The average score for the level of satisfaction was 2.96 of 5, which reflects a moderate level of satisfaction with nursing care. None of the 19 items of the satisfaction scale exceeded the moderate level. The highest mean score of satisfaction level was 3.20 (SD = 1.17) for the skills and competence of nurses, while the lowest mean score was 2.68 (1.22) for the coordination of care after discharge.

Nurses as patients and/or caregivers evaluated the nursing care during their hospitalisation differently in comparison with public patients. The findings indicated that nurses perceived only moderate levels of satisfaction when undergoing experiences of hospitalisation.

The findings from this study may help nurses to become more alert for meeting the patients' needs as desired under the best practice.