Investigating the Relationship between the Quality of Interaction with Patient and Professional Self-Concept of Nurses and Nursing Students of Birjand University of Medical Sciences, 2019

Considering the importance of effective communication skills to support patients and their families, and on the other hand, the negative impact of nurses' unfavorable self-concept on patient care, it is necessary to identify factors affecting professional self-concept. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the quality of patient interaction and the professional self-concept of nurses and nursing students of Birjand University of Medical Sciences.

This correlational study was conducted in 2019. Nurses were selected by stratification and nursing students of Birjand University of Medical Sciences by convenience method. In order to collect data, the communication skills with patients and the nursing professional self-concept questionnaire were used. Data were analyzed using SPSS v.16 software and descriptive statistics and t-tests, Pearson's correlation coefficient and linear regression.

The mean age of students was 21.4±1.6 years and nurses were 28.0±4.5 years. The results of linear regression showed professional self-concept, directly and significantly predicts the quality of interaction with the patient (p<0.001, β=0.351). The result of the Pearson correlation coefficient showed that there is a direct and significant relationship between professional self-concept and the quality of interaction with the patient (p <0.001, r=0.351).

According to the results of the study, communication skills and professional self-concept of nursing students and nurses are moderate and need to be improved. On the other hand, due to the direct connection between these two concepts, it is felt necessary to train and prepare nurses and nursing students with the help of workshops and revisions of nursing educational curriculum, in order to have a higher professional self-concept and increase patient interaction skills.