Opinions and Perceptions of Nurses Working in Pediatrics Clinics Regarding the Effect of Compassion on Quality of Care: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Aim: In this study, it was aimed to determine the opinions and thoughts of pediatric nurses about compassion and determine its effect on care. Method: The research was carried out with the phenomenology pattern, one of the qualitative research methods, and a semi-structured in-depth interview method. The research population consisted of 40 pediatric nurses working in a university hospital. Based on data saturation, the data collection process was terminated at the 13th interview. As a data collection tool, a "Personal Information Form" consisting of socio-demographic characteristics, questions about the clinic studied, and an "Interview Guide" consisting of ten questions, created by the researcher in the light of the literature, were used. Data were collected by face-to-face interview method. Audio recordings of all interviews made in the analysis of the data were deciphered manually. The audio recordings were coded and discussed by the researchers and grouped under main themes and sub-themes. Results: The findings obtained from the interview were grouped and exemplified under three main themes: the perceptions of the nurses working in pediatric clinics regarding the concept of compassion, the nursing roles in which compassion is used, and the effect of compassion on the quality of nursing care. Conclusion: As a result of the research, nurses found empathy and compassion to be related to each other, working in pediatric clinics increased compassion, and compassion was the quality of care; It has been determined that the increase in atraumatic care practices, better communication, more patient satisfaction, increasing the satisfaction and professional satisfaction of nurses have a positive effect.