Surgical Fear, Anxiety, and Satisfaction with Nursing Care: A Cross-Sectional Study of Hospitalized Surgical Patients

Background: Surgery is often accompanied by fear and anxiety, which can adversely affect recovery and patient's well-being. Understanding the relationship between surgical fear and anxiety and satisfaction with nursing care can help nurses target interventions that improve perioperative outcomes. Aim: We aimed to investigate surgical fear, preoperative anxiety, and satisfaction with nursing care among hospitalized surgical patients and identify clinical and experiential predictors of surgical fear. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study of 100 adult surgical patients was conducted using the Surgical Fear Questionnaire (SFQ), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and a validated Patient Satisfaction with Nursing Care Questionnaire. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 29.0 to explore the associations. Results: Patients reported high overall satisfaction with nursing care but notable preoperative anxiety and moderate surgical fear. Previous surgery, prior anesthesia exposure, longer hospital stay, and limited knowledge of the illness independently predicted greater surgical fear. Conclusions: Despite overall high satisfaction with nursing care, surgical patients experience considerable fear and anxiety. Nurses can reduce the perioperative psychological burden by delivering structured, nurse-led preoperative education, improving communication, and offering emotional support. Integrating such interventions into routine surgical pathways could reduce fear and anxiety and improve the patient experience.