Evaluation of Patient's Views about Personal Privacy during Nursing Care Print

The need for privacy is an essential human right. The aim of all previous studies on patient privacy was to improve healthcare standards. This study explored patients’ views about personal privacy during nursing care. This cross-sectional study was conducted on patients referring to Persian Gulf Martyrs Hospital in Bushehr, Iran. Overall, 384 patients were randomly selected. Data were collected using a standard questionnaire; the reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient (alpha coefficient=0.78). For data analysis, t-test, ANOVA, and chi-square test were performed, using SPSS version 18. The significance level was considered to be 0.05. There was no statistical difference between the average score of patient's views and respect for privacy in personal space component (p>0.05). However, in private realm component, a significant difference was observed (p<0.05). As the results indicated, in patients’ opinion, respect for private realm and space was at a moderate level at the hospital. Also, patients’ views were significantly associated with the level of education and place of residence. Since in patients’ view, privacy is only moderately respected in hospital environments, more attention needs to be paid to patient privacy in order to enhance the quality of care and gain patients’ trust.