Nursing in health care centers is an area that has been studied very little in Finland. The purpose of this study was to describe the workplace culture of designated nurses (i.e. those specifically allocated to care for a particular patient) working in health care centers. The target population was all designated nurses of the health care centers of one town (N=300). Data (n=150) was obtained via an electronic questionnaire. Workplace culture was assessed using the existing Nursing Context Index (NCI) instrument, and data was analyzed statistically.Designated nurses had a fairly positive attitude towards their workplace culture. They occasionally experienced overall job stress, their overall job satisfaction was moderate, and they generally regraded their overall practice environment as good. Workload was the main cause of stress. Personal satisfaction was the highest main reason of job satisfaction. The nurse–doctor relationship operated best in their overall practice environment. Their working experience as a designated nurse was related to their overall job satisfaction (p=.002). Participation in education (p=.019), working experience in current workplace (p=.005), working experience as a designated nurse (p<.001), and the number of work pairs at their own health center (p=.001) were related to their satisfaction with training.The results of this study may be used in improving the workplace of designated nurses working in health care centers, but the improvement of workplace culture has to begin from an understanding of the existing workplace culture.
