Evaluation of missed nursing care needs and reasons in a hospital of Turkey: A comparative cross-sectional study

Aim: The research was descriptive in order to examination of missed nursing care requirements and reasons. Method: A descriptive, cross-sectional, and comparative research design was used in this study. The research was conducted with 400 nurses working in the emergency, intensive care and clinics of a hospital in Turkey. Research data were collected the Introductory Information Form and the Missed Nursing Care Scale. The descriptive number of the study was represented by the percentage mean ± standard deviation. Results: According to the results of our study, most frequently the nurses found that missed nursing care requirements were ambulation three times daily, turning the patient every 2 h, patient bathing/skin care, mouth care, feeding patients while food is still warm, and to provide emotional support to the patient and / or patient relatives. The most highly ranked reasons for missed nursing care were the inadequate number of staff members, unexpected increase in patient volume and/or acuity on the unit, inadequate number of assistive and/or clerical personnel, urgent patient situations. Conclusion: According to the results of our study, it was determined that the nurses missed the care needs of the patients. Labor resources are among the most important reasons for unmet nursing care needs.