The assessment of staff satisfaction is one of the most critical issues for the management of health services. This seems to be a necessity both for organizational and humanitarian purposes since job satisfaction is positively related with physical and emotional health.
AIM The objective of this study was to assess the nurses’ and paramedics’ job satisfaction at a public general hospital in Greece and to identify the variables associated with it. Additional objectives of the study was to depict all aspects of employment activities such as the perceptions of the staff, the nurse-patient relationships, stress associated with job environment, opinions for the improvement of work patterns etc.
MATERIAL-METHOD A questionnaire with multichoice questions was designed and the research was carried out through personal interviews. 151 nurses and paramedical staff accepted to participate and answer the questionnaire.
RESULTS Among the findings was that 51.1% of nursing staff seems to be dissatisfied from their occupation and this dissatisfaction is mainly attributed to the underestimation of their efforts and the difficult and stressful work environment. The respective percentage for the paramedical staff was 72% and it is attributed to the relations with other health care professionals and to the poor recognition of their work.
CONCLUSIONS An increase in the nurse per patient ratio and the case-mix of the staff along with an improvement of the hospital infrastructure could greatly improve the health performance indicators of the hospital.
Original Paper