Joy-of-life in cognitively intact nursing home residents: the impact of the nurse–patient interaction

Abstract

Background: The nursing-home population is at a high risk of declined well-being and quality of life. Finding approaches to increase well-being among older adults in nursing-homes is highly warranted. Responding to this need, the approach framed ‘Joy-of-Life-Nursing-Homes’ (JoLNH) was developed in Norway. Aim: To investigate the association between nurse–patient interaction and joy-of-life in the nursing-home population. Methods: Cross-sectional data were collected in 2017 and 2018 using the Nurse–Patient Interaction Scale and the Joy-of-Life Scale. A total of 204 cognitively intact nursing-home residents met the inclusion criteria and 188 (92%) participated. A structural equation model (SEM) of the relationship between nurse–patient interaction and joy-of-life was tested by means of STATA/MP 15.1. Ethical approval was given and each participant provided voluntarily written informed consent. Results: The SEM-model yielded a good fit with the data (χ2 = 162.418, p = 0.004, df = 118, χ2/df = 1.38, RMSEA = 0.046, p-close 0.652, CFI = 0.97, TLI = 0.96, and SRMR = 0.054). As hypothesised, nurse–patient interaction related significantly with joy-of-life (γ1,1 = 0.61, t = 7.07**). Limitations: The cross-sectional design does not allow for conclusions on causality. The fact that the researchers visited the participants to help fill in the questionnaire might have introduced some bias into the respondents’ reporting. Conclusion: Relational qualities of the nurse–patient interaction should be essential integral aspects of nursing-home care. Consequently, such qualities should be emphasised in clinical practice, and research and education should pay more attention to nurse–patient interaction as an important, integral part of the caring process promoting joy-of-life and thereby well-being.