Determinants of Professional Behavior among Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study in Nurse Population at Public Health Centers in Indonesia

Abstract

Introduction: The provision of community health care service is strongly correlated with professional attitudes and behavior among nurses. Professionalism retains public trust and erases negative perceptions of the inappropriate behavior, incompetence, poor communication, and inadequate complaint handling skill. Therefore, the recent study aimed to explore the determinants that influenced nurses' professional behavior in Public Health Centers in Indonesia. Methods: This was an analytic observational study using a cross-sectional research design. A two-months-study conducted from August to October 2022, involving a total of 227 eligible nurses from 50 public health centers (Puskesmas) in Jember Regency, East Java, Indonesia. Results: Recent findings revealed several determinants of the professional behavior of nurses in the public health care setting: 1) professional behavior was influenced by sociodemographic, individual, and psychological factor, 2) the most significant influence was delivered by the individual factor, 3) individual factor was specifically portrayed by the indicator of professional practice competency and skill among the nurses, and 4) subsequently, a higher level of practice competency and skill would contribute to a better professionalism. Conclusion: Sociodemographic, individual, and psychological factor concurrently influence the development of professional behavior among the nurses.