A cross‐sectional observational study of missed nursing care in hospitals in China

AIM: To identify the risk of missed nursing care (MNC), and contributing factors, in Chinese hospitals. BACKGROUND: National reporting of adverse incidents diminishes errors of commission. To further improve service quality and patient safety, MNC should be reduced. METHODS: An online survey comprising the MISSCARE Survey and the McCloskey/Mueller Satisfaction Scale was conducted with a convenience sample of nurses (n = 6,158) in 34 Chinese hospitals. RESULTS: Participants’ mean age was 30.6 (SD = 7.014), and 2.5% were male. The most frequently missed nursing care items were basic care (12.7%–51.8%). The most frequently reported reasons were human resource issues (63.1%–88.2%). Being female, no child, better educated, a manager, permanently employed, no night shift, inadequate friend support and job dissatisfaction influenced the perception of MNC (odds ratio 1.00–4.848). CONCLUSIONS: MNC often occurred in basic care involving informal caregivers or in surge status due to a sudden increase in workload. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Nurse managers should prioritize effective measures that target delegation competency and mobilization of nurses for flexible repositioning during need.