Personality Traits, Personal Values, and Life Satisfaction among Polish Nurses

Professional values and nursing care quality: A descriptive study

BACKGROUND

Professional values are important in promoting healthy work environments, patient satisfaction, and quality of care. Magnet® hospitals are recognized for excellence in nursing care and as such, understanding the relationship between nurses' values and Magnet status is essential as healthcare organizations seek to improve patient outcomes.

RESEARCH QUESTION/AIM/OBJECTIVES

The research question is: are there differences in individual values, professional values, and nursing care quality for nurses and nurse managers practicing in Magnet, Magnet journey, and non-Magnet direct patient care settings?

RESEARCH DESIGN

This descriptive cross-sectional study is guided and informed by the conceptual framework of the Professional Values Model including individual values, professional values, and nursing care quality.

PARTICIPANTS AND RESEARCH CONTEXT

Convenience sampling of registered nurses and nurse managers, responsible for direct patient care, was utilized in a non-profit healthcare system in the Midwest region of the United States.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Institutional review board approval was obtained. Participants were informed about the right to self-determine participation and assurance of anonymity.

FINDINGS

827 (n = 827) nurses and nurse managers responded to the survey. Significant differences were identified in individual values sub-scale: self-enhancement (p = 0.38), professional values (p = 0.037), practice environment: participation in hospital affairs (p = 0.00), foundations for quality care (p = 0.016), and resources adequacy (p = 0.012) and in nurse sensitive HCAHPS questions: nurses explained things understandably (p = 0.00), got help as soon as wanted (p = 0.00), and treated with courtesy and respect (p = 0.00).

DISCUSSION/CONCLUSIONS

Findings indicate that fostering individual and professional values may impact nursing practice, regardless of Magnet designation. Promoting professional values may contribute to improved work environments, enhancing patient satisfaction. Study results offer valuable insights for organizations striving to enhance nursing values, impacting quality of care provided to patients.

MESH TERMS

Cross-Sectional Studies, Respect, Ethics Committees, Patient Satisfaction, Nurse Administrators, and Personal Satisfaction.

From Anxiety to Hardiness: The Role of Self-Efficacy in Spanish CCU Nurses in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background and Objectives: Evidence shows that throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses suffered from emotional symptoms, yet in spite of this, few studies within "positive psychology" have analyzed the emergence/promotion of positive traits, such as hardiness. In this context, the present study aimed to test a model regarding the mediating role of self-efficacy between anxiety experienced at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and hardiness assessed six months later among nurses in critical care units (CCU) in Spain. Materials and Methods: An observational, descriptive, prospective longitudinal study with two data collection periods: (1) from the 1 to the 21 June 2020 (final phase of the state of alarm declared in Spain on 14 March) in which socio-demographic and occupational variables, anxiety (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, DASS-21), self-efficacy (General Self-Efficacy Scale, GSES) and basal resilience (Resilience Scale-14, RS-14) were assessed, and (2) a follow-up 6 months later (January-March 2021) in which hardiness (Occupational Hardiness Questionnaire, OHQ) was evaluated. To analyze the data, multivariate regressions were performed using the PROCESS macro (simple mediation, model 4). Results: A total of 131 Spanish nurses from CCUs, with a mean age of 40.54 years (88.5% women) participated in the study. Moderate and severe levels of anxiety were observed in 19.1% of the sample. Significant and positive correlations were observed between self-efficacy, hardiness and resilience (all p < 0.001). Significant negative correlations were observed between anxiety and self-efficacy (p < 0.001), hardiness (p = 0.027) and resilience (p = 0.005). The indirect effect of anxiety on hardiness through self-efficacy was significant (Effect (SE) = -0.275 (0.100); LLCI = -0.487, ULCI = -0.097), contributing to 28% of the variance, including resilience (p = 0.015), age (p = 0.784), gender (p = 0.294) and years of experience (p = 0.652) as covariates. A total mediation was observed (non-significant anxiety-hardiness direct effect; Effect (SE) = -0.053 (0.215), t = 0.248, p = 0.804, LLCI = -0.372, ULCI = 0.479). Conclusions: The results suggest that in Spanish CCU nurses, anxiety experienced at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic may contribute to the development of hardiness through positive resources such as self-efficacy.