References
Job satisfaction of paediatric nurses working in tertiary care hospitals in Greece — Determining factors
Abstract
Background:
Professional satisfaction affects the quality and the effectiveness of health services provided to patients.
Aims:
The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors affecting the job satisfaction of paediatric nurses.
Participants and setting:
Nurses working at two Pediatric Hospitals in Athens (
Methods:
Data collection was carried out using the ‘Measure of Job Satisfaction-MJS’ (Cronbach's α=0.95). Statistical processing was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 23 (SPSS, Inc. Chigago IL, USA). Univariate analysis of variance (univariate ANOVA) was used to evaluate the means of the job satisfaction questionnaire values. The significance level was set at α <0.05. Finally, Pearson's correlation index test was performed to find correlations between the subcategories of the questionnaire
Results:
The majority of the sample was female (n=161) and most nurses underwent a 3-year nursing education programme (n=147). The results of the study showed that 45.4% of the participants were generally satisfied with their work whereas 55.9% were dissatisfied with their salary.
The factors that appeared to affect the professional satisfaction of nurses were age (
Conclusions:
Professional satisfaction of nurses is characterised as moderate. The most important factors influencing professional satisfaction were age, unit, work experience and marital status. Improving nurses' job satisfaction will contribute to effective and safe nursing care provided to paediatric patients.
Practical implications:
Leaders aiming at optimising nurses' job satisfaction should consider decreasing workload, improving education in the workplace, applying rotation in stressful units, increasing income, increasing the percentage perspectives by improving work circumstances.
Job satisfaction can be defined as the attitude and feelings individuals experience about their work. Job satisfaction has a strong relationship with mental and physical health. People who are more satisfied with their work are happier and healthier. Job satisfaction contributes to better work outcome and productivity and reduces nurses' absenteeism and turnover (Satuf et al, 2018; Ozdoba et al, 2022).
Job satisfaction is a prerequisite for efficient nursing, especially when working with children and particularly children with complex chronic health problems or who are critically ill, for whom extensive knowledge and skills are required (Bratt et al, 2000; Bleazard, 2020; Kaya and İşler Dalgiç, 2021).
Thus, it is important to search for factors affecting job satisfaction in various countries and settings in order to optimise the care of sick children. Literature data indicate that nurses' professional satisfaction and quality of life are influenced by age, gender, family status, salary, educational level and future prospects. Not less, prior nursing experience, the type of working unit, the relationship with colleagues and patients, as well as the cyclic programme of working hours constitute contributory factors to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. These factors have been evaluated in various settings in different studies (Bratt et al, 2000; Robins et al, 2009; Ibrahim et al, 2016; Nowrouzi et al, 2016; Khosrojerdi et al, 2018; Satuf et al, 2018; Bleazard, 2020; Kagan et al, 2021; Kiliç Barmanpek et al, 2022).
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