Nurse Competence On Patient Safety, Work-Related Quality Of Life, And Caring Behaviors Among Nurses In A Tertiary Hospital In General Santos City, Philippines

Abstract

The concept of caring holds a universal and important role in the art and science of nursing practice, including all facets of providing care to patients. In the Philippines, the direct link of nurse competence on patient safety and work-related quality of life towards the caring behavior has not been plausibly investigated in the critical care unit during the pandemic malady. This study aimed to determine the correlation of nurse competence on patient safety and work-related quality of life on the caringa tertiary hospital in General Santos City, Philippines. A descriptive-correlational design was used to delineate their significant relationship. The respondents were seventy (70) ICU nurses who were chosen through simple random sampling technique. The Critical

Care Nursing Competence Questionnaire for Patient Safety (C3Q-safety), Work- Related Quality of Life (WRQoL) Scale, and Caring Behavior Inventory (CBI-24 nurse

version), were used as the research instruments in the study. The results revealed that in the aspect of nurses’ competence on patient safety, the highest mean score was the principle of nursing care while collaboration domain received the lowest mean score. In terms of work-related quality of life, the job and career satisfaction domain of nurses got the highest mean score which specifically indicates that ICU nurses have a clear set of goals and aims to enable themselves to do their job. With regards to the caring behaviors of nurses, the knowledge and skills domain got the highest mean score while the domain of assurance of human presence got the lowest mean value of which it further explains on how nurses treated their patients as an individual. Significantly, nurse competence on patient safety and work-related quality of life showed a strong and positive relationship on the caring behavior of nurses. It suggests that nurses’ competence on patient safety and work-related quality of life are correlated with an increase in the level of caring behavior of nurses, thereby promoting safe and quality nursing care among critically ill patients. Consequently, a recommendation was also considered such as the establishment of a culture that promotes continuous learning which is crucial for enhancing the safety competency among critical care nurses and potential intervention program like basic nursing critical care to address the nurses’ caring behavior.