Job satisfaction of nurses working in public hospitals: perceptions of nurse unit managers in South Africa

Background:Job satisfaction among nurses often determines whether they choose to remain in the profession or in the facility where they work.Aim:The study sought to explore and describe the job satisfaction of registered nurses in South Africa through the lens of their nurse unit managers.Methods:A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive design was undertaken. Fourteen unit managers were interviewed and Tesch's method of data analysis was used.Findings:Four themes emerged: ‘staff shortages lead to nurses feeling overwhelmed and frustrated’, ‘nurses’ work performance is undermined by limited resources and poor infrastructure', ‘discontent among nurses with regard to poor top level and human resource management’ and ‘despite challenges, nurses experience rare moments of job satisfaction’.Conclusion:Unit managers need to find ways to enhance existing elements of job satisfaction by emphasising the nurse–patient relationship and teamwork among their staff in order to improve the overall job satisfaction of staff.