Nurses’ reflections on episodes occurring during their provision of care — an interview study

The aim of this study was to investigate nurses’ reflections and interpretations regarding their provision of care, through interviews (N 46), using a hermeneutic method of analysis. Nurses work in a milieu that has undergone constant changes such as, in organisation, decreased number of staff, and with patients demanding more advanced care. The care provided, based on the nurses’ narrated episodes were interpreted as two main aspects: interpersonal oriented aspects and task oriented aspects. The subaspects were identified as ‘nurse–patient relationship’, ‘ability to understand the patients’ suffering’ and ‘taking responsibility’.