Background:

The working environment is of great significance for the health of individuals. Nurses can be negatively affected by the workload being too high. This in turn can lead to higher risks in the nursing care of patients.

Aim:

To highlight circumstances that affect the work environment of nurses, on the hospital ward, and its impact on the nursing care of the patients.

Method:

A literature review based on Friberg's (2012) model. The databases CINAHL and PubMed were used for literature searches and resulted in ten articles, seven quantitative and three qualitative articles. The results from these articles were analysed and formed the different themes of the main findings.

Results:

The result showed a number of circumstances that affected the working environment of nurses on a hospital ward. Staffing level, manager and leadership, organization and routines and relations where all circumstances that could lead to feelings of frustration, anxiety, stress and lack of control which in turn influenced the quality of patient care.

Conclusion:

Shortage of staff, manager and leadership are significant circumstances that affect the working environment and health of nurses on a hospital ward as well as having an influence on the quality of the care given to the patients.