LAUSR

AIM AND OBJECTIVE This investigation examined the influence of workplace incivility (WPI) on the quality of nursing care (QNC). BACKGROUND Recent evidence describes WPI as a serious concern in the health care setting worldwide. Exposure to WPI can alter a nurse's behaviour, thought process and perspective towards the nursing profession. However, there is insufficient evidence to determine if WPI might be associated with the quality of nursing care in Saudi Arabia. DESIGN A quantitative and cross-sectional study. METHOD A survey was carried out amongst 378 nurses in two government hospitals in Saudi Arabia from February 2018 to May 2018 using the Nurse Incivility and QNC scales. Multivariate multiple regression was performed to investigate the influence of the uncivil experiences of nurses from different sources on the different aspects of QNC. The study adhered to STROBE guideline (see Supplementary File 1). RESULTS The overall mean of the QNC scale was 3.14 (SD = 0.66) from a scale of 1 to 5, with patient satisfaction receiving the highest mean dimension (mean = 3.27, SD = 0.72) and health promotion the lowest mean dimension (mean = 3.08, SD = 0.74). Experience in the present hospital and the hospital were associated with the overall QNC. General and nurse incivility exerted a multivariate effect on overall QNC and its different dimensions. CONCLUSION General incivility and nurse incivility were found to negatively impact QNC and its different dimensions. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Stronger policies geared towards eliminating workplace incivility should be implemented as uncivil acts can lead to poor QNC. Nurse administrators and nurses should be pro-active in recognising, preventing, approaching, reporting and intervening with uncivil acts in the hospital to protect these workers from these types of behaviours and avoid their negative impacts on patient care.