Association between the sense of social togetherness perceived by deputy chief nurses working in acute care hospitals and their interactions with significant other colleagues in the ward

Abstract

Purpose:The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between the sense of social togetherness perceived by deputy chief nurses working in acute care hospitals (which have wards with highly acute phase and/or acute phase functions) and their interactions with significant other colleagues in the ward (chief nurses, fellow nurses, and physicians). The sense of social togetherness is the feeling of being trusted, understood, and warmly accepted by such significant other colleagues, and is related to motivation. We also considered effective management approaches aimed at enhancing the sense of social togetherness of deputy chief nurses.

Methods:We conducted a questionnaire survey among 993 deputy chief nurses in wards, units, and operating rooms of 52 hospitals throughout Japan.

Results:On multiple regression analysis using the sense of social togetherness experienced by deputy chief nurses as the dependent variable, the most common factors in achieving a sense of social togetherness were “deputy chief nurses' years of experience (p=.004),” “transfer between facilities when promoted to chief nurse (p=.003),”“chief nurses admit fault and apologize (p=.006),” “workplace support from fellow nurses (pp<.001),” and “adequate communication with physicians (pp<.001),”.

Discussion:This study revealed that factors identified as increasing the sense of social togetherness experienced by deputy chief nurses include the adoption of a sincere attitude by chief nurses, and for the involvement of deputy chief nurses in building a work environment in which they receive support from fellow nurses in their ward and can communicate adequately with physicians.