[Measuring patient satisfaction in an emergency unit of a Swiss university hospital: occurrence of anxiety, insecurity, worry, pain, dyspnoea, nausea, thirst and hunger, and their correlation with patient satisfaction (part 2)].

This article reports the second part of a comprehensive study examining patient satisfaction with nursing care in ambulatory patients of a Swiss emergency department. A descriptive cross-sectional study examined patient satisfaction, using a revised version of the questionnaire <<Patient satisfaction with nursing care>> in a convenience sample of 114 patients. The occurrence and intensity of anxiety, insecurity, worry, pain, dyspnoea, nausea, thirst and hunger, and their correlation with patient satisfaction were analyzed. The patients also reported if effective nursing interventions were carried out. Patients suffered from the following states or symptoms: Pain (70%), thirst (45%), insecurity (44%), anxiety (38%), hunger (25%), and nausea (12%). Despite the occurrence of these states or symptoms, not all patients reported receiving effective nursing interventions. Dyspnoea and pain were detected well by nurses and patients received effective nursing interventions. Anxiety, insecurity, nausea, thirst and hunger were not detected well by nurses; and patients often evaluated the nursing interventions they received as ineffective. These results were analyzed and compared with the findings measured by the instrument "Patient satisfaction with nursing care" applying correlations and ANOVA. Patients who suffered from the states or symptoms described above and reported receiving ineffective nursing interventions showed significantly lower patient satisfaction scores than patients not suffering from these states or symptoms. Statistically significant correlations were found between worry, pain, anxiety and patient satisfaction. The results of both studies (part 1+2) (Müller-Staub, Meer, Briner, Probst & Needham, 2008) are discussed, conclusions drawn and implications for practice and research presented.