Abstract
A structured questionnaire survey of randomly selected 229 patients in two public hospitals (maternity wards) in Cape Town, South Africa was done to explore post-natal patients’ perceptions towards the ethical behaviour of nurses in their wards. 150 questionnaires received were usable for descriptive, correlation, and exploratory factor analysis (principal component analysis). From the results, inadequate nurses’ number, negligence on the part of the nurses, and lack of detailed information to patients are the three clear issues that need to be addressed in these public hospitals to increase patient satisfaction and retention, should they wish to give birth again. Patients’ concerns with the nurses’ ethical behaviour is related to ‘empathy’ and ‘assurance’ dimensions. The importance of these two dimensions cannot be overemphasised in medical care, globally, as they are increasingly becoming the driving forces towards patients’ satisfaction and retention. Understanding the individual needs of the patients and showing them that the nurses do care through emotive individualised attention, and acts that raise the confidence levels of patients that the nurses and the hospital will deliver safe services, are recommended.
Highlights
It is common knowledge that medical care is quite complex, and that the medical team, the patients and the patients’ relatives are getting well informed on how to resolve ethical concerns within the medical practice
The 45% of patients who stated they will not recommend the hospitals to friends and relatives raise a strong alarm towards the nurses and the healthcare system in these maternity wards
The correlation test showed that in as much as there are positive correlations between ‘empathy’ and ‘assurance’ dimensions, the variable – ‘nurses helped me change beds’, found in the ‘assurance’ factor has no correlation with the ‘empathy’ variables – ‘nurses received me with dignity and love’, ‘nurses consulted me at procedural steps’, and ‘I was informed of my birth route’
Summary
It is common knowledge that medical care is quite complex, and that the medical team, the patients and the patients’ relatives are getting well informed on how to resolve ethical concerns within the medical practice. Chadwick et al (2014) who conducted their qualitative study in South Africa found that one-third of the women interviewed in the study had positive birth experiences and half of the respondents had negative birth experiences that are related to poor interpersonal relationships with caregivers, lack of information, negligence, and absence of a labour companion. This quantitative study conducted in South Africa (Cape Town) goes further to explore more conclusive dimensions that women who came to hospitals to give birth regard important for their satisfaction. The importance of this study in the medical care cannot be overemphasised, as health institutions strive to continuously understand the driving forces towards patients’ satisfaction and retention
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