Background: Substance abuse often results in health care problems for the patient. Patients with health problems because of substance abuse require person-centred care and nurses' who are able to provide this care. The aim of this study was to describe general nurses' experiences of caring for patients with drug and alcohol abuse. The method used was literature based and the databases used to find articles were Cinahl, Proquest and Pubmed. Ten qualitative articles were included in the study and they were examined through a review template. The results showed that nurses experienced fear, distrust and stress when caring for patients with drug and alcohol abuse. Additionally, nurses experienced that a good relationship with patients, more knowledge and clearer guidelines made it easier to care for these patients. Conclusion: This study showed that nurses' needed a good caring relationship, a good attitude and more knowledge about substance abuse in order to provide qualitative good care to patients.