Abstract The successive reorganizations of most Western health care networks have led to constant pressure on practice conditions in nursing services administration. In addition, some studies argue that structural and managerial shortcomings due to reorganizations have severe impact on quality of work life (QWL) for frontline nurse managers (FLNMs). The primary purpose of this article is to discuss the potential relevance of Watson's human caring philosophy to FLNMs' understanding of the QWL experience. Integrating all these elements led to the development of a humanistic caring QWL model that can be offered to propose possible solutions for management and research.