An exploration of factors influencing inpatient nurses’ care behaviour in an acute hospital setting

Abstract

Abstract Objective To examine factors influencing caring behaviour of nurses in Singapore. Design Descriptive correlational study using Care Behaviour Inventory (CBI-24) questionnaire to assess nurses’ perceptions of their caring behaviours. Setting Acute tertiary hospital in Singapore. Participants A convenience sample of 167 full time registered nurses working in subsidized wards, with more than 1 year of experience in current practising ward were recruited. Main outcome measure(s) Nurses’ perception of their caring behaviours. Results Data analysis yielded a mean CBI score of 123.11 out of 144, indicating that nurses had a positive perception of their caring behaviours. Among the 4 CBI subscales, Respectfulness and Connectedness components of CBI were ranked the lowest with a mean score of 4.2 and 4.9, respectively. This indicated that although nurses generally performed adequate caring during patient care, they appeared to be lacking in the expressive aspect of caring. Significant differences (P < 0.05) were found among subgroups of nationality, ethnicity, religion and education level. Nurses’ perception of their caring behaviours was positively correlated to their age and total working experience. Linear regression showed that age, religion, education level positively influenced nurses’ perception of their caring behaviours. Conclusion Findings from this study raise awareness to the caring behaviours that nurses were lacking in and also offer valuable insights to the potential factors influencing nurses’ caring behaviours. This information serves as a foundational knowledge to guide the development of interventions aimed to promote patient-centred care and improve quality of future nursing care.