Background Caring for patients is the core aspect of nursing and a cornerstone of all nursing duties. Although caring is seen as a critical component of nursing delivery and an essential characteristic of nursing, there seems to be a gap between theory and practice. Aim The aim of this article was to explore and describe the experiences of caring for patients by professional nurses in public health clinics in Ekurhuleni. Setting The study was conducted in Ekurhuleni, an area east of the Gauteng Province in two public health clinics. Methods A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive phenomenological and contextual research design was used. In-depth, individual phenomenological interviews were conducted with eight purposefully sampled professional nurses to explore their experiences of caring for patients in public health clinics in Ekurhuleni. Data were analysed using Giorgi’s coding method. Results Two themes were revealed in the study findings. The first theme was the experienced empowering aspects of caring while the second theme was the experienced disempowering aspects of caring. The experienced empowering aspects of caring had two categories: empowering interpersonal experiences and the empowering experiences through client affirmation. These were identified by the participants as enabling effective caring for patients. The experienced disempowering aspects of caring also had two categories: disempowering interpersonal experiences and the disempowering experiences resulting from public health clinic system challenges. The disempowering aspects were identified by participants as disenabling effective caring for patients. Conclusion The study findings reveal that the professional nurses had empowering and disempowering experiences while caring for patients in the public health clinics.

Background: Caring in nursing helps patients feel better, whilst the absence of caring will affect patients psychologically, emotionally and physically.Aim: The aim of this article was to explore and describe primary health care (PHC) professional nurses’ and PHC nurse managers’ perceptions of the developed strategies to facilitate effective caring for patients in PHC clinics.Setting: This study was conducted in two PHC clinics in Ekurhuleni, an area east of the Gauteng province, South Africa.Methods: The study used a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design. In-depth individual phenomenological interviews were conducted with eight purposively selected PHC professional nurses working in PHC clinics and two PHC nurse managers supervising PHC clinics in Ekurhuleni. Giorgi’s coding method was used to analyse the data.Results: Three themes were identified from the results of the exploration and description of PHC professional nurses’ and PHC nurse managers’ perceptions of the developed strategies. The use of active listening skills, showing interest in what is being said, asking questions and providing constructive feedback that focuses on the issue were the most effective strategies in improving effective communication between PHC nurse managers and PHC professional nurses. The PHC professional nurses were encouraged to put patients’ interests first whilst adhering to the ethical principles of nursing.Conclusion: Although caring is considered as the core of nursing practice, PHC professional nurses and PHC nurse managers perceive that rendering effective caring for patients needs to be reinforced through the use of strategies that will enable change and improve clinical practice in PHC clinics.

Peer review declarationThe publisher (AOSIS) endorses the South African 'National Scholarly Book Publishers Forum Best Practice for Peer Review of Scholarly Books'. The manuscript underwent an evaluation to compare the level of originality with other published works and was subjected to rigorous two-step peer review before publication, with the identities of the reviewers not revealed to the editor(s) or author(s). The reviewers were independent of the publisher, editor(s) and author(s). The publisher shared feedback on the similarity report and the reviewers' inputs with the manuscript's editor(s) or author(s) to improve the manuscript. Where the reviewers recommended revision and improvements, editor(s) or author(s) responded adequately to such recommendations. The reviewers commented positively on the scholarly merits of the manuscript and recommended that the book be published.

Peer review declarationThe publisher (AOSIS) endorses the South African 'National Scholarly Book Publishers Forum Best Practice for Peer Review of Scholarly Books'. The manuscript underwent an evaluation to compare the level of originality with other published works and was subjected to rigorous two-step peer review before publication, with the identities of the reviewers not revealed to the editor(s) or author(s). The reviewers were independent of the publisher, editor(s) and author(s). The publisher shared feedback on the similarity report and the reviewers' inputs with the manuscript's editor(s) or author(s) to improve the manuscript. Where the reviewers recommended revision and improvements, editor(s) or author(s) responded adequately to such recommendations. The reviewers commented positively on the scholarly merits of the manuscript and recommended that the book be published.

Background: Caring is described as the innermost core of nursing which occurs in a relationship between the patient and the care provider. Although caring in nursing is associated with maintaining and strengthening of the patient’s sense of dignity and being a person, there seems to be a gap between caring theories in nursing, healthcare policies and caring for patients by professional nurses in primary health care clinics. Developing strategies that will facilitate effective caring for patients by professional nurses in primary health care clinics within an ethical and mindful manner became an area of focus in this study.Objectives: To develop strategies to facilitate effective caring for patients by professional nurses in primary health care clinics in South Africa.Method: Strategies were developed based on the conceptual framework developed in Phase 2, which was derived from synthesis of the results of Phase 1 of the previously conducted study and supported by literature. The conceptual framework reflects the survey list of Dickoff, James and Wiedenbach’s practice theory.Results: Three strategies were developed: 1) facilitating maintaining of the empowering experiences; 2) facilitating addressing the disempowering experiences by professional nurses, and 3) facilitating addressing of the disempowering primary health care clinic systems.Conclusion: The developed strategies, being the proposed actions, procedures and behaviours, could facilitate effective caring for patients by professional nurses in primary health care clinics.