Exploring Nurses’ Meaning and Experiences of Compassion: An International Online Survey Involving 15 Countries

Papadopoulos, Irena; Taylor, G.; Ali, Sheila; Aagard, Magdeline; Akman, Özlem; Alpers, Lise‐Merete; Apostolara, Paraskevi; Biglete-Pangilinan, Sylvia; Biles, Jessica; Martín‐García, Ángel; González-Gil, Teresa; Koulouglioti, Christina; Kouta, Christiana; Krepinska, Radka; Kumar, Bernadette Nirmal; Lesińska–Sawicka, Małgorzata; Díaz, Alba Lucero López; Malliarou, Maria; Nagórska, Małgorzata; Nassim, Sara; Nortvedt, Line; Oter‐Quintana, Cristina; Öztürk, Candan; Papp, Katalin; Regev, Orit Eldar; Rubiano, F. O.; Diaz, Maria Ymelda Tolentino; Tóthová, Valérie; Marios, Vasiliou; Zorba, Akile

doi:10.1177/1043659615624740

Cited by 48 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 17 publications

(40 reference statements)

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“…Within this policy, compassion is defined as: “ how care is given through relationships based on empathy, respect and dignity—it can also be described as intelligent kindness, and is central to how people perceive their care ” (Cummings & Bennett, , p. 13) (see also Table ). Compassion in Practice was developed largely in response to the Francis inquiry and its definition of compassionate care has been cited and used in other included documents (e.g., Duffy, ; Papadopoulos et al., ; Price, ; Pryce‐Miller & Emanuel, ). Its definition appears to have largely replaced that provided by the Prime Minister's Commission on the Future of Nursing and Midwifery in England ().…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How fundamental aspects of nursing care are defined in the literature: A scoping review

Feo

Kitson

Conroy

2018

Journal of Clinical Nursing

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How fundamental aspects of nursing care are defined in the literature: A scoping review

Feo

Kitson

Conroy

2018

Journal of Clinical Nursing

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“…The socio-political structures and their impact on compassion was also expressed by the participants in the open-ended questions which were reported in Papadopoulos et al (2015); despite the differences on the chosen definition of compassion, nurses' enactments of compassion were very similar to patients' reported experiences and perceptions of compassionate care. 'Giving time, being there and getting to know the patient' are reported as significant expressions of compassion among patients (Bramley & Matiti 2014) and among the participants of this study (Papadopoulos et al 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International study on nurses’ views and experiences of compassion

Papadopoulos

Zorba

Koulouglioti³

et al. 2016

International Nursing Review

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Background Compassion is considered the cornerstone of nursing practice. However, the recent failures in delivering high‐quality compassionate nursing care in the UK's National Health Service have brought the topic of compassion to the attention of the public, service providers, policy makers and academics. Aim The aim of this study was to explore the nurses’ views and experiences of a number of compassion‐related issues in nursing and describe similarities and differences at an international level as well as from the different nursing roles of the participating nurses. Methods An exploratory, cross‐sectional descriptive study, using the International Online Compassion Questionnaire. A total of 1323 nurses from 15 countries completed the questionnaire. Results The majority of participants (59.5%) defined compassion as “Deep awareness of the suffering of others and wish to alleviate it” but definitions of compassion varied by country. Of participants, 69.6% thought compassion was very important in nursing and more than half (59.6%) of them argued that compassion could be taught. However, only 26.8% reported that the correct amount and level of teaching is provided. The majority of the participants (82.6%) stated that their patients prefer knowledgeable nurses with good interpersonal skills. Only 4.3% noted that they are receiving compassion from their managers. A significant relationship was found between nurses’ experiences of compassion and their views about teaching of compassion. Conclusion Our study is unique in identifying the views and experiences of nurses from 15 different countries worldwide. The findings reveal that compassion is neither addressed adequately in nursing education nor supported in the practice environment by managers. Limitations Self‐report bias was inherent to our survey study design. Furthermore, the individual cultural differences and similarities in the findings are difficult to extrapolate owing to the fact that our analysis was at country level, as well as at the level of the participating nurses. Implications for nursing policy Understanding the influence of culture on nurses’ views about compassion is critical in the current multicultural healthcare environment and merits further research. This will potentially drive changes in nursing education (ensuring that compassion is taught to nurses) and in the way healthcare leaders and managers foster a compassionate culture within their organizations (e.g. by leading by example and compassionate to their staff).

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“…Multiple factors, such as experience, age and support from managers, influence compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue (Hunsaker, Chen, Maughan, & Heaston, ). In addition, the diverse cultural composition of the nursing workforce means there are diverse world views held by staff as to what constitutes compassion within a clinical environment (Papadopoulos et al, ). Moreover, the ability for nurses to make meaningful connections may be hindered by the nature and contexts in which they are working (Hunsaker et al, ; van Mol, Kompanje, Benoit, Bakker, & Nijkamp, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a busy clinical environment, being consistently present to this extent may be challenging. However, nurses understanding the impact of a busy workplace on their ability to interact positively with patients will provide them with opportunities to consciously integrate the behaviours and actions of compassionate care into practice (Durkin et al, ; Hunsaker et al, ; Papadopoulos et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This may explain why nurses working under busy clinical workloads focus on physical care and ignore the relational aspects of care. However, being unable or unwilling to integrate compassion into every day nursing care will arguably lead to compassion fatigue, burnout (Papadopoulos et al, ) and ultimately nurses leaving the profession (Aiken et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Optimising compassionate nursing care at the end of life in hospital settings

Robinson

Moeke-Maxell

Parr

et al. 2019

Journal of Clinical Nursing

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Background: An urgent need to improve palliative care in hospital has been identified. Moreover, service users consistently report care delivered by nurses in hospital as lacking compassion. Compassion is a fundamental component of nursing care, and promoting compassionate care has been identified as a policy priority in many countries. To help address this within the hospital context, we recently completed research exploring bereaved family experiences of good end of life care in hospital.We found that family accounts of good care aligned with Nolan and Dewar's compassionate care framework and subsequently extended the framework to the bi-cultural context of Aotearoa, New Zealand. Aims and objectives:In this discussion paper, we explore synergies between our newly developed Kapakapa Manawa Framework: a bi-cultural approach to providing compassionate care at the end of life and the Fundamentals of Care. We argue that our framework can be used to support the implementation of the relational component of the Fundamentals of Care and the delivery of compassionate nursing practice in hospitals in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Design: Discussion paper. Methods: Review of relevant literature and construction of two vignettes describing good end of life care from the perspectives of bereaved family-one Māori and one non-Māori. The vignettes provide practical examples of how the values of the Kapakapa Manawa Framework can be enacted by nurses to provide compassionate care in alignment with the relationship component of the Fundamentals of Care. Conclusions: Whilst the Kapakapa Manawa bi-cultural compassionate care framework has grown out of research conducted with people nearing the end of their lives, it has the potential to improve nursing care for all hospital inpatients. Relevance to clinical practice: Addressing the wider policy and health system factors detailed in the Fundamentals of Care will support its implementation in the clinical setting. | 1789 ROBINSON et al.

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Exploring Nurses’ Meaning and Experiences of Compassion: An International Online Survey Involving 15 Countries

Abstract: Further research is needed to explore the country and culture differences in the enactment of compassion.

Cited by 48 publications

References 17 publications

How fundamental aspects of nursing care are defined in the literature: A scoping review

How fundamental aspects of nursing care are defined in the literature: A scoping review

International study on nurses’ views and experiences of compassion

Optimising compassionate nursing care at the end of life in hospital settings

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