Identification of factors leading to job dissatisfaction among nurses working in critical care units public and private hospitals in Bloemfontein

English: Job satisfaction as a phenomenon has been researched intensively over the years because both the employee and the organization benefits from it. On the other hand, job dissatisfaction as human experience has only recently been identified as a phenomenon that is not the opposite of job satisfaction nor a subdivision of job satisfaction. Job dissatisfaction as a phenomenon is a real life situation and human experience that needs to be researched. The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that lead to job dissatisfaction among nurses working in the critical care units. The research design was non-experimental of a descriptive and explanetory nature. The survey method was used to obtain the necessary data. The data were obtained by use of a structured questionnaire which was completed by all professional nurses and all nurse managers working in the critical care units of the private and public hospitals in Bloemfontein. The responses to all open-ended questions was analysed according to the method described by Tesch. All data was analysed on a nominal descriptive level. Grounded on the results, professional nurses expressed that they were motivated by selfactualisational values to work in the critical care units. According to the critical nurses most important job dissatisfiers are embedded in the human resource management process and as such have to be rectified to enhance job satisfaction. The managers on the other hand, indicated that factors in the general management process lead to the job dissatisfaction experienced by critical care nurses and as such need to be rectified. In the light of these findings, the recommendations for minirnisingjob dissatisfiers and enhancing job satisfiers were made. Further research into phenomenon of job dissatisfaction was also recommended.