Depicting clinical nurses' priority perspectives leading to unfinished nursing care: A pilot Q methodology study

To highlight (a) trends common to all nurses on priorities attributed to interventions, and (b) whether there are profiles of nurses working in the same context who prioritize interventions in a similar way.

The underlying prioritization of interventions leading to unfinished nursing care has been minimally investigated.

A 2017 pilot Q methodology study. Full-time nurses, with at least 6 months of experience in a surgical unit, were involved. Eleven nurses rated the priority given in daily practice (from -3 as the lowest to +3 as the highest) to 35 Q-sample statements representing nursing care, non-nursing and organisational interventions.

Overall, the intervention receiving the lowest priority was 'Providing patient hygiene', while the highest was 'Answering phone calls'. In the by-person factor analysis (total variance = 60.79%), three profiles of nurses emerged, (a) 'Patient safety-oriented' (variance = 31.66%); (b) 'Nursing task-oriented' (=16.32%); and (c) 'Team process-oriented' (=12.81%).

Three profiles of nurses emerged in the same setting with significant differences both in the statistical order of priorities and in their practical implications.

Understanding levels of prioritization, which are not only affected by the unit but also by sub-groups of nurses who rank priorities in a similar way, can support nurse managers in their role.