Creating an environment to support hardiness and quality patient care

Patient care environments play a significant role in the nurses' ability to provide quality patient care and receive personal satisfaction through caregiving work. Hardiness is defined in terms of the presence of three characteristics: control, or the belief that individuals can control or influence occurrences in their lives; commitment, or an ability to feel involved in the activities of their lives; and challenge, or the anticipation of change as an exciting challenge to further development. These characteristics can be cultivated through the environment. Leadership actions and behaviors influence environmental development to stimulate and cultivate the characteristics of hardiness.