Abstract
The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge of principles in primary nursing (responsibility, autonomy, coverage and co-ordination), to assess the way in which nursing was organized and to assess the philosophy of nursing of the personnel.
The data were collected using a questionnaire consisting of multiple-choice and open-ended questions from nursing personnel in a surgical hospital. A response rate of 63 %from the wards and 61% from the other units was achieved.
The results of the study indicate that the nursing staff at the hospital has knowledge of primary nursing, although the personnel described autonomy as a principle only a few times. Nevertheless the personnel perceived themselves as autonomous in making decisions and in working situations. The personnel at the wards used several modes of delivering nursing care; functional nursing caused most dissatisfaction. The nursing philosophy of the nursing staff seems to be identical with the philosphy of primary nursing.
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