Numerous studies have found that organizational features connected with the work environment of nurses have a significant influence on patients’ safety. The aim of this research was to capture nurses’ opinions about patients’ safety and discern relationships with work environment characteristics. This cross-sectional study surveyed 1825 nurses. The research used questionnaire consisting of four parts: (1) covered The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI); (2) assessed the quality of nursing care and care safety; (3) contained information on the most recent duty served by the nurses and (4) captured social and demographic data of participants. The research identified strong association between patient safety assessment and work environment of nurses in the aspect of employment adequacy, cooperation between nurses and doctors, support for nurses from the managing staff, the possibility to participate in the management as well as professional promotion of nurses employed in the hospital (p < 0.001). Nurses rated patient safety higher when responsible for a smaller number of patients. Work environment factors such as proper staffing, good cooperation with doctors, support from the management, as well as professional independence are significantly related to nurses’ assessment of patients’ safety.

In critically ill patients, normal eye protection mechanisms, such as tear production, blinking, and keeping the eye closed, are impaired. In addition, many other factors related to patients’ severe condition and treatment contribute to ocular surface disease. Reducing risk factors and proper eye care can have a significant impact on incidences of eye complications and patient quality of life after discharge from the intensive care unit (ICU). The aim of the study was to determine risk factors for ocular complication, especially those related to nursing care. The study was conducted in the ICU of a university hospital. Methods for estimating and analyzing medical records were used. The patient’s evaluation sheet covering 12 categories of risk factors for eye complications was worked out. The study group included 76 patients (34 patients with injuries and 42 without injuries). The Shapiro–Wilk test, the Spearman’s rank correlation test, the Mann–Whitney U test and the Friedman’s ANOVA test were used. The level of significance was set at α = 0.05. The most important risk factors for eye complications in the study group were: lagophthalmos (p < 0.001), sedation (p < 0.01), use of some cardiological drugs and antibiotics (p < 0.01), mechanical ventilation (p < 0.05), use of an open suctioning system (p < 0.01), presence of injuries (p < 0.01) including craniofacial trauma (p < 0.001), high level of care intensity (p < 0.01), failure to follow eye care protocol (p < 0.001), length of hospitalization at the ICU (p < 0.001), and the frequency of ophthalmological consultations (p < 0.001). There was no correlation between the incidence of these complications and the age and gender of the patients. The exposure of critically ill patients to eye complications was high. It is necessary to disseminate protocols and guidelines for eye care in ICU patients to reduce the risk factors.

Background: Nursing students’ education process is related to the occurrence of difficult and stressful situations, especially during clinical placement. The purpose of the education is to develop critical thinking, clinical decision making and teamwork skills in students. This process should allow the students to integrate into the clinical environment and develop their professional identity. The goal of this research was to assess the relationship between perceived stress and psychosocial factors. Methods: The research was conducted in 2019 among 307 nursing students in Poland. Research questionnaires used in the study were: Perceived Stress Scale, Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, Self-Esteem Scale, Life Satisfaction Scale, Life Orientation Test-R and Clinical Learning Environment Inventory. Results: There was a significant correlation between stress perceived by the surveyed nursing students and psychosocial components as well as teacher support and student’s satisfaction with clinical education. Satisfaction with the clinical education during the implementation of clinical activities was the highest in people experiencing a low level of stress. The highest level of teacher support was reported by people experiencing a higher level of stress. Conclusion: A higher level of perceived stress corresponded to a lower level of self-efficacy, lower life satisfaction, lower life orientation and lower self-esteem of students.

Aim: To study the relationship between Polish nurses' working conditions and their attitudes towards patient safety during the COVID‐19 pandemic.Background: Facing the COVID‐19 pandemic, caused by the SARS‐CoV‐2 virus, healthcare worldwide has been reorganised. How these changes affected patient safety for hospitalised persons is not well understood.Introduction: Difficult working conditions related to the outbreak of the COVID‐19 pandemic may affect the provision of safe and effective care by healthcare staff.Methods: This observational research was performed on the group of 577 nurses working during the COVID‐19 pandemic in isolation infection wards (n = 201) and non‐infectious diseases wards (n = 376) in Polish hospitals. The evaluation of working conditions was performed with an author's questionnaire, while the evaluation of factors influencing attitudes towards safety of the hospitalised patients was performed using Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. The STROBE checklist was used to report this study.Results: The procedures developed by management in advance for COVID‐19 patient treatment had a statistically significant influence on nurses' ‘evaluation of teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, perception of management and work conditions’. Providing management with the ability to perform a swab polymerase chain reaction SARS‐CoV‐2 test for hospital staff in the workplace, and psychological support from professionals and employers were statistically significant for higher ratings of ‘teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, stress recognition, perception of management and work conditions’ by the Polish nurses. Hospital workload during the COVID‐19 pandemic was significantly correlated with lower evaluation of work conditions.Discussion: Our study reinforces the existing literature on many fronts and demonstrates how even when operating under the COVID‐19 pandemic conditions, some factors remain critical for fostering a culture of patient safety. Reinforcing patient safety practices is a imperative under these conditions.Conclusions and implications for nursing: Working conditions influence nurses' attitudes towards safety of the hospitalised patients. These are largely modifiable factors related to the workplace and include prior preparation of procedures, restrictions to extending daily work hours and psychological counselling for the staff.

Introduction: The development of pneumonia in patients treated in intensive care wards is influenced by numerous factors resulting from the primary health condition and co-morbidities. The aim of this study is the determination of the correlation between nutritional status disorders and selected risk factors (type of injury, epidemiological factors, mortality risk, inflammation parameters, age, and gender) and the time of pneumonia occurrence in patients mechanically ventilated in intensive care wards. Material and method: The study included 121 patients with injuries treated in the intensive care ward who had been diagnosed with pneumonia related to mechanical ventilation. The data were collected using the method of retrospective analysis of patients’ medical records available in the electronic system. Results: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) occurred more frequently in patients over 61 years of age (40.4%), men (67.8%), after multiple-organ injury (45.5%), and those with a lower albumin level (86%), higher CRP values (83.5%), and leukocytes (68.6%). The risk of under-nutrition assessed with the NRS-2002 system was confirmed in the whole study group. The statistical analysis demonstrated a correlation between the leukocytes level (p = 0.012) and epidemiological factors (p = 0.035) and the VAP contraction time. Patients infected with Staphylococcus aureus had 4% of odds for the development of late VAP in comparison to Acinetobacter baumannii (p < 0.001), whereas patients infected by any other bacteria or fungi had about four times lower odds of the development of late VAP in comparison to Acinetobacter baumannii (p = 0.02). Patients with results in APACHE from 20 to 24 and from 25 to 29 had 13% and 21%, respectively, odds of the development of late VAP in comparison to patients with APACHE II scores ranging from 10 to 19 (respectively, p = 0.006; p = 0.028). Conclusions: The development of VAP is impacted by many factors, the monitoring of which has to be included in prophylactics and treatment.