The main purpose of this study was to explore nurse-patient interaction behaviors and patient satisfaction with the interaction in the emergency department.

This study used video technology to record complete conversations between the nurse and patient, thus obtaining the interactions naturally occurring in a clinical setting. The participants were 28 nurses and 63 patients in the emergency department at one university hospital located in Seoul. The data was collected from November, 2002 to April, 2003. The video recordings were observed for 4 hours for each case and coded using an adapted version of Roter's Interaction Analysis System (RIAS), which yields frequencies of thirty-six types of interaction behaviors.

The information exchange related to therapeutic items including medications, simple orientation, and situational positive talk were characterized in the nurses' interaction behaviors. Giving information about one's own condition, questions about therapeutic regimen, and showing worry were characterized in patient interaction behaviors. The patients' satisfaction with the interaction was 37.75.9 (range 9-45).

The emergency nurse-patient interaction behavior was task-related. The results suggest that identification of effective interaction behavior in the Emergency department and an interaction skill training program could increase patient satisfaction.