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Quality of health care is the degree of the most optimal degree of health outcomes by delivery of effective, efficient and cost‐benefit professional health services to people and communities. As nurses are the largest groups among health care professionals and are legally liable and morally responsible for their care, thus their perspective on quality of nursing care is important. The purpose of this qualitative study is “to define and describe quality from the perspective of nursing experts and clinical nurses”.

In this paper data were collected in two phases (ten individual interviews and five focus group discussions). A total of 44 clinical nurses and ten nursing experts participated through a purposeful sampling frame. Data analysis was conducted by latent content analysis to achieve a definition of nursing care quality.

The findings in this paper show that, according to similarities and differences between nursing experts' and clinical nurses' perspectives on quality, the final definition is “delivery of safety care based on nursing standards which eventuates in patient satisfaction”. Findings reveal that in nurses' perspectives on quality definition two important aspects have been mostly considered: “standard of care” and “patient satisfaction”. Moreover, both participant groups have emphasized the benefits of collaborative work in health care (teamwork). Further in this study, organizational and socio‐cultural roles in delivering quality nursing care have been mentioned such as staffing, budget, leadership, and social perspectives about nursing as a highly educated profession.

The paper offers an overview of nurses' perspectives of quality of nursing care in Iran.

Hampshire County Council, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Strategic Health Authority and the seven primary care trusts in the County Council area have formed a partnership to create additional nursing care capacity. This paper examines the background, identifies an approach to modelling the need for nursing home places and addresses the partnerships being put in place to create additional capacity in the public sector.

The “baby-boom” generation is poised for retirement. Yet the American states exhibit sharp inequalities in the public support they provide for nursing facility long-term care for the elderly, a form of health care that few Americans can afford to purchase privately. Further, remarkable disparities exist, both within and among states, in the quality of nursing facility care. We describe cross-state variation in Medicaid support for and the quality of nursing facility care, offer regression models that provisionally explain the sources of these inequalities, comment on the social implications of these disparities and recommend a solution.

There is increasing evidence in the literature that patient outcome is strongly linked to the quality of nursing care. In practice, the process of measuring the quality of nursing care is complex and multifaceted as it is dependent not only on the skills and practices of the individual nurse, but also on the professional and organisational structure that is practised within. The expert panel concept was developed to address clinical standards and practice at The Royal Melbourne Hospital. The Nursing Expert Panel's purpose was to evaluate nursing practice, identify practice deficits, highlight areas of clinical innovation and excellence, and make recommendations where appropriate to improve patient outcome. The aim of this paper is to investigate this.

A pilot programme to evaluate eight clinical areas was developed and implemented. The key areas of evaluation included clinical care as well as the managerial and professional practices that support patient care. The Expert Panel, consisting of predominantly nursing staff, was recruited from within the organisation. During the evaluation, the panel collected qualitative and quantitative data using a variety of data collection tools. Data were then analysed and recommendations developed.

Five common themes of practice deficit were identified during the pilot period and the development of strategies for practice improvement is in progress.

Following successful implementation of the pilot phase, the Nursing Expert Panel process is now being implemented across the organisation. With ongoing evaluation and improvement of the Expert Panel Process, this quality initiative will become the foundation of nursing standards and practice evaluation at this organisation.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the Thai nursing student competency enhancement program applied through project-based learning (PjBL) in caring for the elderly in the community.

This quasi-experimental one-group pre-post-test design was used to compare mean scores on gerontological nursing competency scales comprising four dimensions including holistic health promotion, empirical evidence, empowerment and quality care and ethical and moral competencies. A total of 95 participants were randomly selected from a list of registered attendees. A five-week PjBL approach for a community nursing practicum was designed and comprised of an introduction to the project, components of research methodology, group projects and group presentations. A gerontological nursing competencies questionnaire was used with participants, and data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Two-way ANOVA and a paired t-test were used to compare pre-post mean scores of competencies.

A total of 95 students participated in the PjBL and the majority of participants were female (92.6%). The results revealed post–PjBL mean scores of gerontological nursing competencies were higher than the premean score (p value < 0.05) except the empirical evidence competencies which showed no statistical difference.

Since the results show the effectiveness of the student nursing competency enhancement program through PjBL when caring for the elderly in the community, it is important for health care instructors to apply PjBL, especially in community nursing. Improving empirical competency evidence among nursing students is still required and necessary.

This paper presents a research study that demonstrates the inadequacy of the traditional biomedical approach to caring for older people and shows the benefits of using a more holistic, bio‐psychosocial approach. An ethnographic inductive approach was taken. Non‐participant observation was performed on complete episodes of nursing practice, followed by semi‐structured interviews to explore and ratify theories in use. Phase one of the data analysis used qualitative inductive analysis to generate main categories and themes. Phase two was a process of factor isolation, which identified factors of practice theories in use. The themes identified were: nursing therapeutics; preventative nursing; communication; nurse‐patient relationships; collaborative nursing; nursing assessment; decision making; and management of patient care. Further analysis identified that important theoretical factors included: encouraging; responding; comforting; explaining; maintaining ability; judgement in action; and collaborating. This knowledge is embedded in the practice theories of practitioners but it is only by exploring and critiquing these that we can hope to understand the complex nature of nursing practice as it relates to the care of older people.

In view of the decline in the number of residential and nursing homes over the last few years, East Sussex, Brighton and Hove Health Authority was concerned about optimum usage of places. This project aimed to ascertain the views of home owners and managers on their working relationship with the health authority, local hospitals and social services.Respondents felt that the incoming residents were generally frailer and more dependent than a few years ago, funding allocations were inadequate, given the standards now expected of care homes, and there were delays of up to a year in reaching agreement. Several indicated that they would no longer take publicly funded clients unless the families could top up the payments. Ten percent of the private residential homes surveyed were for sale or due to close. Between 40 and 50 older people were estimated to be awaiting transfer to EMI or nursing homes in East Sussex. Over 35% of homes complained about inappropriate discharges of their residents from hospital, and a poor standard of nursing care. Communication with hospitals was poor and relationships with the health authority and social services needed strengthening. Routine admissions were appropriate, but hospital discharges may have been premature. Home owners/managers were dissatisfied with their relationship with the NHS. Improvements are needed if partnership working is to be developed.

The aim of this paper is to describe registered nurses' (RNs') ways of working and their views on what competence they require, make use of and wish to develop when caring for older people at residential facilities.

The participants comprised 23 RNs, trained after 1993 and working at seven residential facilities. The data collection consists of group interviews during spring 2009. The group interviews were subjected to content analysis.

Three main categories and six sub‐categories were identified. The findings show that the majority of RNs work in a consultative way although they are responsible for basic care as well as advanced nursing care. They must rely on the staff's competence. They compare the residential facilities to a “mini‐hospital” and they are often frustrated by the staff's incompetence. Attitudes to research findings and to the use of evidence‐based knowledge were limited.

RNs require extensive theoretical, technical and medical knowledge as well as knowledge related to persons with dementia conditions and psychiatric disorders and how to lead, teach and supervise.

Social and professional isolation influences competence development and working situation and the differences in leadership influence the quality of nursing care. RNs do not critically reflect on what knowledge they require and make use of and how to search for scientific knowledge and this will have a negative influence on the attitude to the competence.

There is a need of extensive and varied knowledge in evidence‐based nursing as well as in leadership and teaching to be able to work independently.

This exploratory study investigated patients’ satisfaction with nursing care at a major teaching hospital in Jordan. A total of 266 in‐patients participated in the study. Patients were recruited from the medical, surgical, and gynecological wards. Pearson correlation, one‐way analysis of variance, and logistic regression analyses were used. The findings showed that patients in surgical wards had lower levels of satisfaction than patients in medical or gynecological wards. Gender, educational level, and having other diseases were significant predictors for patients’ satisfaction with nursing care. Methodological challenges, implications to nursing practice, and recommendations to nursing research are discussed.