Visión de la felicidad de profesionales de Enfermería en el desarrollo de su práctica profesional

Objective: to explore the experience of the Nursing profession and its impact on happiness. Method: a qualitative study conducted through a discussion group. Intentional sampling was conducted, looking for profiles representative of the Nursing reality, based on their professional setting, gender, age, and years of experience. The inclusion criteria established were: participants should be currently working, and conducting their professional activity in the Community of Madrid. Results: four categories were found: definition of happiness, happiness with the profession, factors associated with happiness in the Nursing profession, and future prospects. The participants described that what makes nurses happy is caring for others, the close and direct contact with patients, without any influence by the setting of work or unit where they conducted their work, as long as it had been chosen by them. Finally, they pointed out that in the collective setting there is a situation of professional disaffection, mainly motivated by the structure where they work and the management of their work. Conclusion: in the individual setting, the act of caring for others is seen as the essential factor that generates happiness in nurses, without any influence by the setting where this is conducted, as long as nurses have control over their professional life and the environment is adequate. However, from a collective point of view, the nursing profession seems to be going through a moment of unhappiness, mainly motivated by structural and management aspects regarding their work activity.