The perception of psychiatric-hospital ward sisters/charge nurses towards nursing models.

A search of the literature revealed a dearth of research on hospital ward-based practitioners' opinions/perceptions towards nursing models. This is surprising considering that such frameworks are being introduced into patient care settings on an international basis. As part of a larger investigation pertaining to model selection, the researcher interviewed a population of 95 ward managers, giving each of them the opportunity to put forward their views concerning models of nursing. The research area was psychiatric continuing-care/rehabilitation facilities in Northern Ireland. The majority of opinions (61.1%) were positive in nature while 23.2% of respondents voiced negative perceptions. Implications for nursing practice, education and administration are raised from the study's findings.