Exploring the Need Experience of Nurses in a Multicultural Healthcare Setting

This qualitative descriptive study explored the unique bedside ‘need experience,’ linguistic and non-verbal communication barriers, and daily operational pressures encountered by frontline Filipino expatriate clinicians in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Grounded in qualitative descriptive methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of fifteen (15) Filipino expatriate nurses working within a private, secondary-care healthcare facility in Dubai. Data analysis followed a rigorous thematic analysis model to identify recurring patterns of culture-based barriers, systematic unit impacts, and adaptive coping mechanisms. The study uncovered critical linguistic-cultural boundaries, including clinical vocabulary deficits during acute symptom assessments and complex patriarchal family dynamics. These communication gaps directly compromised patient safety by creating false affirmation loops ("Inshallah, yes") during critical discharge instructions while generating extensive operational workflow and medical handoff delays across shifts. To manage these routine pressures and mitigate moral distress, the clinicians relied heavily on self-generated makeshift digital tools, visual cues, and informal peer support networks. Ultimately, the findings emphasized the critical need for healthcare institutions to move beyond standard operational orientations and actively implement structured, culturally tailored communication training frameworks to safeguard patient safety and support expatriate nurses’ well-being.