Frequency and reasons for missed nursing care: a cross-sectional study in Veneto Region hospital

Frequency and reasons for missed nursing care: a cross-sectional study in Veneto Region hospitals. Introduction: Missed nursing care (MNC) encompasses clinical, relational, and emotional aspects of care that are neglected, delayed, or incomplete as performed by nurses. Aims: 1. To describe the frequency of MNC across various clinical settings within hospitals in the Veneto Region; 2. to identify the underlying motivations for MNC; 3. to analyze the relationship between the characteristics of nurses, organizational factors, and the perceived frequency of MNC. Methods: This cross-sectional exploratory study involved 12 healthcare organizations in the Veneto region. A total of 2,179 nurses and 159 coordinators participated, completing the Unfinished Nursing Care Survey questionnaire. Data was collected on the individual characteristics of the nurses and the organizations involved. Results: The least missed care activities included patient monitoring and surveillance, while the most missed were active/passive mobilization, supervision of support staff, and oral care. The primary reasons for MNC were related to insufficient human resources, unpredictability of workflow, and communication difficulties. Senior nurses were more likely to report MNC (OR 1.026; 95% CI 0.567-0.963), whereas those more satisfied with their role in the unit (OR 0.691; 95% CI 0.585-0.817) and those working in spoke hospitals (OR 0.739; 95% CI 0.567-0.963) were less likely to perceive missed nursing care. Conclusions: The study emphasizes that, generally, nurses perceive that they infrequently miss, omit, or delay care activities, particularly those related to patient monitoring and surveillance.