Environmental Factors Affecting Health-Related Quality of Life: Nurses' Narrative Analysis

The hospital environment is recognized as one of the most stressful workplaces. The impacts of the hospital environment on the health-related quality of life of nurses necessitate the consideration of their viewpoints in the field of design and maintenance of the hospital environment. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify environmental factors affecting the promotion of nurses' health-related quality of life.

In this study, 10 nurses working in a selected hospital were chosen through purposeful sampling and participated in the narrative analysis. The required data were collected through narratives from semi-structured interviews with participants. The content of all narratives was evaluated by the thematic analysis.

The environmental factors affecting the nurses' health-related quality of life were classified into four main themes: physical environment”, “functional support of the environment”, “social support of the environment”, and “psychological support of the environment. Besides, the themes related to the physical environment were classified under space configurations and air quality. Furthermore, functional support was placed under ergonomics. Communications and territory were found as subsets of the theme of social support, while interior design, tranquility, light quality, air quality, and the sense of control were classified under the main theme of psychological support. The frequency of themes repeated in the narratives indicated that psychological support and the physical environment have the highest impact on the health-related quality of life of nurses.

According to the findings of the study, policymakers, managers, and designers are recommended to try to understand nurses' perceptions of positive workplace components, and to introduce necessary environmental actions and interventions to promote the health-related quality of life of nursing staffs.