Univ., Diss.--London, 2005.

<p>Much evidence exists that nurses are leaving the public health sector for the private sector, or leaving the country to seek better working conditions and higher salaries. Studies conducted on the job satisfaction of nurses are proof that there is a need to know more about the factors that influence their sense of job satisfaction. Most of these studies focus on the general nursing context. Due to its unique circumstances, many studies abroad have identified the field of psychiatric mental health nursing to investigate job satisfaction of nurses. The minithesis is an attempt to fill the gap that exists in job satisfaction studies in South Africa of nurses in a provincial psychiatric hospital. The study was a cross sectional, correlational, survey design study. The instrument was a self-administered questionnaire, combining a quantitative questionnaire with one qualitative open-ended question. The study was conducted on nurses of all categories in a provincial psychiatric hospital in the Western Cape. Sixty- eight nurses participated in the study. The data was analyzed statistically using the SAS v9 statistical software and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The open-ended question was analyzed qualitatively. The results revealed that the participating nurses were dissatisfied with remuneration, recognition and appreciation, training and development, as well as benefits and incentives. Nurses were most satisfied with supervision and support, interpersonal relationships, and rendering patient care. The study identified the factors influencing job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction of nurses in a provincial psychiatric hospital. Recommendations were made based on the results of the research.</p>

The entrance space of a hospital has formed an effective period of hospital life since it has reflected the scope and the image of the entire facility. Therefore it has directly influenced by the new formation of healthcare facilities on preserving and growing role of the community health instead of threatening the illnesses. Since entrance space is apart from the other spaces in the facility that has shaped by the restrictive nature of the medical technology, the space most efficiently implement these new objectives more than any space of the entire facility. However, entrance spaces of hospitals in Turkey are still bothered with many insufficiencies and displayed a problematic panorama. Therefore, this thesis has obtained the problems of main entrance space, and has analyzed it with a consistent form of criteria to gather new solution proposals. In order to serve for this purpose, the present Turkish health care environment has explored and entrance space has been analyzed around new emerging concepts that reflect the changing ideals of the community. To present the problems and solution proposals about this specific place sufficiently, they are also evaluated through design and performance criteria. The essence of coping with the stress created by the environment with healing potential is emphasized. As a result, this thesis is expected to influence further researches, new hospital main entrance space designs as well as the renovation of older ones.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / This study was conducted to increase our understanding of children and young people’s experience of a hospital environment and to identify the salient attributes of the physical environment in their experience. There were three specific aims: to describe children and young people’s experience of a hospital environment and identify what constitutes a supportive paediatric environment; to examine the role of the physical environment in patients’ feeling of well-being; and to highlight the capacity of participatory research with children and young people to inform evidence-based paediatric design. At this stage, there has been very little healthcare design research carried out with populations of children and young people. Well-being research with children and young people in paediatric environments that identifies the potential supportive attributes in this environment is also very limited. Historically research on children’s health and well-being has been dominated by a focus on the prevalence of disorders, problems and disabilities. More recently, in response to the change to health promotion, positive attributes have been included in well-being and satisfaction measures. At this stage, there are still many fewer positive measures. Within the body of literature that exists in healthcare, healthcare design research, and well-being research, there are only a small number of participatory studies that focus on children and young people’s experience of hospitalisation, and an even smaller number that include children and young people’s experience of hospital environments. The picture that is created by the research that exists is patchy. There is a need for a more holistic understanding of children and young people’s experience of hospitalisation and of hospital environments from their own perspectives. Based on these gaps in current knowledge, two research questions were developed. The first was concerned with describing children and young people’s experience of the sociophysical environment of a paediatric hospital. The second question was concerned with understanding the role of the physical environment in children and young people’s feeling of well-being in a hospital environment. In addressing these questions, the intention was to identify attributes within the hospital setting which collectively comprise a supportive environment for children and young people and which contribute to children and young people’s feeling of well-being in a paediatric setting. The current study was conducted as an exploratory qualitative case study and carried out at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, in Sydney, Australia. Using participatory research techniques, the sequence of the study included two pilot studies and the main study. The focus was on understanding the experiences of longer-term patients of a paediatric hospital environment. In the main study 25 children and young people, aged between 9-18 years, who had been in hospital for at least a week completed semi-structured interviews in which they talked about their response to the environment of the hospital and their experience of hospitalisation. Data analysis was completed using a combination of concept mapping and thematic analysis techniques. Preliminary findings were used as the basis of a further member-checking task carried out with a further six children and young people before conclusions were reached. The findings reveal that children and young people’s experience of a paediatric setting involves a number of major areas of influence including their personal situation, their social experience, their interaction with the physical environment, opportunities and characteristics of the organisation, and the effect of time. The findings also reveal that children’s feeling of well-being within this experience is linked to their ability to feel comfortable in the environment, to maintain a positive state of mind, and to remain positively engaged with the experience and the environment. This research reveals a dynamic relationship between children and young people and a paediatric environment that children and young people actively manage and shape. It reveals some of the key considerations in children and young people’s experience of hospitalisation. It also reveals why these considerations are important and what role they play in patients’ experience and feeling of well-being. These findings provide the basis for further research and they have implications for future design and research practice in paediatric healthcare settings.

Submitted to the School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences. Thesis (Ph.D.) -- La Trobe University, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 320-329). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.H.A.)--University of Michigan, 1972.

Thesis (M.H.A.)--University of Michigan, 1975.

Thesis (M.H.A.)--University of Michigan, 1957.

Thesis (M.H.A.)--University of Michigan, 1974.

Thesis (M.H.A.)--University of Michigan, 1975.