The demand for health care has increased. The proportion of old people is higher than before and the development of medicine makes treatment possible to a greater extent. When society changes, the organisation of public medical care must be reconsidered as well (Qvarsell, 1991). Lately, far-reaching rationalisation in the public sector has led to impaired conditions for staff as well as patients. There is now less time for the interaction demanded by the nursing relationship. Nurses, as people, are of decisive importance for the quality of care. Their personalities affect the character of nursing relationships and their behavior involves openness to the needs of others and treating patients as a whole (Bendz, 1995).