Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this research was to describe the decision making of nurses in a VIP ward. Method: The methodology of collecting and analyzing the data was based on the grounded theory of Strauss and Corbin (1998). The data were collected through an in-depth interview, which were audio-taped and transcribed. The data were collected from 10 nurses from July to November 2007. Results: The core category on VIP ward nurses' decision making was named as "adjusting with flexibility and deepened insight". The causal condition was established by 'the patients who wanted to be treated specially'. The contextual conditions included 'caring patients from various departments', 'differences depending on the nurses' clinical experience', and 'client-centered atmosphere in the VIP ward'. The intervening conditions included 'problem solving styles of nurses', 'attitudes of patients and family members', 'nurse-doctor relationships', and 'accessibility to information'. It was confirmed that nurses changed their action-interaction strategies depending on the intervening conditions, thus resulted in the nurses' role conflict and the need to expand their consciousness. Conclusion: The result of this study indicates that nurse's decision making depends on their experiences and the nature of social context in which nursing occurs.
