BACKGROUND: Nurses are the largest part of a country’s healthcare workforce and need to improve themselves professionally and plan careers. If we know the career barriers, it will guide the solution suggestions on this issue. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between working conditions and career barriers experienced by nurses. METHODS: This study was conducted using the descriptive type research design involving 379 nurses working in a province of Turkey between May and June 2020. Data were collected using the Sociodemographic Characteristics Form and the Career Barriers in Nursing Scale. RESULTS: Of the participants scores, 37.21±12.1 were in the “organizational culture and policies” subscale, 17.46±6.0 in the “personal preferences and perceptions” subscale, 10.97±4.5 in the “negative thoughts about the profession” subscale, 8.37±3.0 in the “stereotypical biases” subscale, and 16.20±5.2 in the “multiple roles” subscale. The average total score of career barriers in nursing was 90.23±27.1. CONCLUSION: A significant but weak negative correlation was found between the total average of the Career Barriers in Nursing Scale score and age (r = –0.121; p = 0.019), graduation date (r = –0.025; p = 0.120), and working time (r = –0.019; p = 0.115). No significant correlation was found between working time in the current institution, average working time per week, and total of the Career Barriers in Nursing Scale score.

BACKGROUND: Fear of pain, which is defined as verbal, physiological, and behavioral responses against potentially painful situations, refers to extreme fear of pain, painful sensation, and anything that may cause this sensation. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the pain fear levels of students and factors affecting fear of pain. METHODS: The study sample consisted of 544 students. To measure the students’ pain fear levels, a 12-item questionnaire, developed by the researchers, and 30-item Fear of Pain Questionnaire-III (FPQ-III) was used. Data were analyzed using the SPSS software. RESULTS: Students the severity of pain subscale, 31.9±8.9; mild pain subscale, 23.8±7.5; medical pain subscale, 27.5±9.0; and average total FPQ score, 83.1±22.0 was foud as. Of the students participating in the study, 80% reported that they had previously experienced pain. Of those who experienced pain, 32.9% reported dysmenorrhea, 18.2% reported headache, and 16.6% reported posttraumatic pain. Moreover, 61.0% of the students attempted to relieve their pain by their own means (medicine, herbal medicine, hot–cold application, etc.), while 70.6% stated that they do not frequently use painkillers. CONCLUSION: It is recommended to develop multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches in the management of fear of pain, which has biological, psychological, social, cultural, economic aspects.