Patrícia Ribeiro Azevedo

Nursing work: challenges for health management in the Northeast of Brazil

AIM Social exchange theory is used as the framework to examine the interaction between supervisor-subordinate relationships, training and affective commitment for Northeast Brazilian public sector nursing professionals. BACKGROUND There are continuing challenges to nursing management worldwide in terms of the supply of nursing professionals, their work relationships, nurse training and commitment to their employing organisations. The interplay between these factors for nurses in the Northeast of Brazil has not been well understood. METHOD Quantitative data were collected from 550 nursing professionals using a cross-sectional, survey-base design. Qualitative data were collected from 25 participants using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. RESULT Using path analysis, and the ordinary least squares approach, the findings demonstrated a significant, but weak, linkage between supervisor-subordinate relationships, training and organisational commitment. The qualitative data suggest that contracting out may be a causative factor. CONCLUSION Healthcare managers in Brazil need to create more positive environments to strengthen supervisor-nurse relationships, improve the provision of training and to strengthen organisational commitment. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT Healthcare policy-makers in hospital can make significant contributions to improving organisational commitment by reducing multiple job holding, improving the ratio of registered nurses to nursing technicians/assistants and beginning nurse supervision training in effective people management.

The influence of bullying on the wellbeing of Brazilian nursing professionals

Social exchange theory is used in this paper to explore how the quality of leader–member exchange (LMX) and perceived organizational support (POS) affect Brazilian nursing professionals’ perceptions of bullying and harassment and, in turn, their wellbeing. Data was obtained from 868 nursing professionals in four public hospitals in Brazil. Statistically significant linkages were found between LMX, POS, bullying/harassment and wellbeing, except for the relationship between POS and bullying/harassment. Healthcare managers and human resource managers clearly need to take initiatives to strengthen LMX and POS, minimize bullying and to strengthen nursing professionals’ wellbeing.