Factors affecting performance of public hospital nurses in Addis Ababa region, Ethiopia

Background Nurses have a major role to play in providing timely, quality health services in hospitals. It is important to identify factors influencing the performance of nurses to improve the quality of healthcare delivered in healthcare organizations. The objective of this study was to identify factors influencing job performance of nurses in public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Materials and methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted from June 2010 to December 2010 in five public hospitals in Addis Ababa. Among 658 nurses meeting the inclusion criteria, the estimated sample size of 290 nurses was selected using a simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaire. Results A total of 230 (80%) questionnaires were returned of the 290 questionnaires distributed to respondents. The results of the study indicated that nurses have rated the following as below average: job performance (mean = 2.71, SD = 0.48), job satisfaction (mean = 2.55, SD = 0.39), and organizational commitment (mean = 2.45, SD = 0.36). Organizational commitment (beta = 0.69, P < 0.01), career development (beta = 0.39, P < 0.01), payment (beta = 0.41, P < 0.01), relationship with colleagues (beta = 0.32, P < 0.01), work condition (beta = 0.21, P < 0.05), and years of experience (beta = 0.27, P < 0.05) have significant effect on nurses' job performance. Conclusion and recommendations This study highlighted that organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and work experience were significant predictors of nurses' job performance. Healthcare organization should give more attention to factors that contribute to job satisfaction and organizational commitments to improve nurses' job performance.