Caregivers in older peoples' care: perception of quality of care, working conditions, competence and personal health

Abstract

The aim was to describe and compare nursing assistants', enrolled nurses' and registered nurses' perceptions of quality of care, working conditions, competence and personal health in older peoples' care. Altogether 70 nursing assistants, 163 enrolled nurses and 198 registered nurses completed a questionnaire comprising Quality from the Patient's Perspective modified for caregivers, Creative Climate Questionnaire, Stress of Conscience Questionnaire, items on education and competence and Health Index. The caregivers reported higher perceived reality of quality of care in medical-technical competence and physical-technical conditions than in identity-oriented approach and socio-cultural atmosphere. In subjective importance, the highest rating was assessed in one of the physical-technical items. The organisational climate was for three of the dimensions rather close/reached the value for a creative climate, for seven dimensions close to a stagnant climate. In perceived stress of conscience, there were low values. Nursing assistants had lower values than enrolled nurses and registered nurses. The caregivers reported highest values regarding previous education making them feel safe at work and lowest value on the item about education increasing the ability for a scientific attitude. Registered nurses could use knowledge in practice and to a higher degree than nursing assistants/enrolled nurses reported a need to gain knowledge, but the latter more often received education during working hours. The health index among caregivers was high, but registered nurses scored lower on emotional well-being than nursing assistants/enrolled nurses. The caregivers' different perceptions of quality of care and work climate need further attention. Although stress of conscience was low, it is important to acknowledge what affected the caregivers work in a negative way. Attention should be paid to the greater need for competence development among registered nurses during working hours.

Health care staffs’ perception of patient safety culture in hospital settings and factors of importance for this

“…In a study by Hughes & Lapane [56], the less educated ENs scored higher than RNs concerning overall resident safety in nursing homes. Similar results were also reported by From et al [57], where ENs scored higher than RNs regarding the organizational climate and quality of care. These results might be explained by the fact that ENs are more frequently involved in direct care to the hospital patients, thus the scoring represents an assessment of one's own labor and proneness to safety.…”

Burden Incurred by Patients and Their Caregivers After Outpatient Surgery: A Prospective Observational Study

“…Lastly, we found that caregivers noted disturbances in mental-and physical-related aspects of their daily lives while providing care for patients. These findings are similar to caregiver studies, the vast majority of which have examined burdens in chronic disease states [8,27,31], where caregivers experienced mental and physical disturbances in their daily lives while providing care, which may diminish their quality of life [19,33].…”

“…Extensive efforts have been made to understand the burdens felt by caregivers of elderly, pediatric, and chronically ill populations [8,27,31]. In 2012, an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association recognized that ''support of family in [the] health care process could advance the triple aim of better health, higher-quality care, and reduced costs for patients'' [29].…”

The education received by nursing students regarding nursing older people: a scoping literature review

“…Undergraduate‐level nursing education clearly has an opportunity to influence students' competence in nursing older people, to a certain degree, as this education generates competencies. However, practising RNs also greatly need to further enhance their competencies . Thus, a focus on continuing education, as well as undergraduate education, is required.…”

“…The number of older people is rapidly increasing worldwide , resulting in a greater number of people requiring health services . Nurses play a key role in the care of older people ; their abilities and actions directly affect the quality of care provided because they are the closest professionals working with older people in need of care . Thus, nurses require diverse and adequate competencies to empower patients and to effectively meet the patient care outcomes necessary in various healthcare settings.…”