Marga Hoogendoorn

85 The varying results of the interrater reliability are also a limitation of this study. We did not analyze the impact of different kinds of nursing interventions on the perceived nursing workload due to the lack of power. The low interrater reliability of the items with a subjective estimation of time can influence the results of the NASA-Task Load Index as a high experienced workload can lead to an overestimation of the time needed for a patient. The impact of the time needed to take care for a dying patient and his or her relatives, can also be higher than the impact of the time needed for administration on the perceived nursing workload by a nurse. In our sample none of the patients died during that shift. Furthermore, perceived workload might be influenced by events in the nurses’ personal life but also other organizational factors like a change in management. Further research is recommended on these aspects of nursing workload. CONCLUS I ON This study showed that workload is differently perceived by nurses compared to the objectively measured workload by the Nursing Activities Score. Both the severity of patient illness and being a student nurse are factors that increase the perceived nursing workload. To keep the workload of nurses in balance, planning nursing capacity should be based on the Nursing Activities Score, the severity of patient illness and the graduation level of the nurse.