Nurses’ behaviours and their impacts on elderly hospitalized patients

Abstract

The patients’ perception of the nursing care quality is determinative in its evaluation of the health care. This exploratory study aims at identifying nurses’ behaviours (positive and negative) significant for elderly hospitalized patients (75 years old or more). The critical incidents technique was administered through interview to 30 elders. The main findings suggest that the elderly hospitalized patients: I) positively appreciate nurses’ behaviours which assure the treatments administration without discomfort, in a context of availability, concern, friendship and kindness; II) negatively appreciate the nurses’ behaviours associated to the administration of treatments causing pain, mainly if accompanied of aggressiveness and unavailability. In this case elders tend to feel sad and to believe in the aggravation of their health conditions. 

Key words: Nurse-patient relations; Health of the elderly; Behaviour; Hospitalization.