Table 1

Background characteristics of study respondents

Variable		Frequency	%
Hospital type	Public	1008	82.4
Hospital type	Private	214	17.5
Position	Nurse	735	60
	Physician/physician in training	101	8.3
	Pharmacist	37	3
	Dietician	5	0.4
	Unit assistant/clerk/secretary	33	2.7
	Respiratory therapist	20	1.6
	Physical, occupational or speech therapist	18	1.5
	Technician (eg, EKG, lab, radiology)	93	7.6
	Administration/management	34	2.8
	Other; please specify:	77	6.3
Primary work area/unit	Many different hospital units	64	5.2
	Medicine (non-surgical)	118	9.6
	Surgery	177	14.5
	Obstetrics	50	4.1
	Paediatrics	89	7.3
	Emergency department	20	1.6
	Intensive care unit (any type)	192	15.7
	Psychiatry/mental health	1	0.1
	Rehabilitation	45	3.7
	Pharmacy	39	3.2
	Laboratory	54	4.4
	Radiology	34	2.8
	Anaesthesiology	36	2.9
	Other	182	14.9
Professional experience (years)	<1	107	8.7
	1–5	380	31
	6–10	279	22.8
	11–15	201	16.4
	16–20	107	8.7
	21 or more	118	9.6
Hospital experience (years)	<1	249	20.3
	1–5	536	43.8
	6–10	247	20.2
	11–15	107	8.7
	16–20	42	3.4
	21 or more	20	1.6
Work unit experience (years)	<1	255	20.8
	1–5	604	49.3
	6–10	204	16.7
	11–15	84	6.9
	16–20	33	2.8
	21 or more	14	1.2
Working hours per week	<20 h	26	2.1
	20–39 h	62	5.1
	40–59 h	901	73.6
	60–79 h	165	13.5
	80 h or more	32	2.6