Nurse occupational burnout and patient-rated quality of care: The boundary conditions of emotional intelligence and demographic profiles.

Abstract

Most previous studies on the relationship between occupational burnout and the quality of care among nurses have used self-reported data on the quality of care from nurses, thus rendering evaluating the relationship between burnout and the quality of care difficult. Hospitals increasingly hire contract nurses and high turnover rates remain a concern. Little is known about whether nurses' emotional intelligence and demographic factors such as contract status, tenure, and marital status affect the quality of care when burnout occurs. This study investigated the relationship between burnout and patient-rated quality of care and investigated the moderating role of emotional intelligence and demographic variables. Hierarchical moderated regression was used to analyze 98 sets of paired data obtained from nurses and their patients at a teaching hospital in northern Taiwan. The results suggest that occupational burnout has a less unfavorable effect on the quality of care from permanent, married, and senior nurses. Nursing management should pay particular attention to retaining permanent, married, and senior nurses. To ensure a sustainable nursing workforce in the future, newly graduated registered nurses should have access to permanent positions and opportunities for long-term professional development. In addition, married nurses should be provided with flexible work-family arrangements to ensure their satisfaction in the nursing profession.