Insaf Altun  ( Department of Fundamentals in Nursing, High School of Health, Kocaeli University, Umuttepe, Kocaeli, Turkey. )
Emine Goksel  ( Minister of Health, Basiskele Health Department, Basiskele, Kocaeli, Turkey. )
Hakan Kitapci  ( The Department of Business Administration, Gebze Institute of Technology, Gebze, Turkey. )

Madam, subjective well-being concerns peoples\' self-reported assessment of their own wellbeing¹. Having a good subjective well-being has always been desirable for humans, and the concept of a good life and the ways of achieving it have become important over the years.² Subjective well-being is an issue of concern for nurses. However, little is known about the subjective well-being of nurses working with frequent exposure to distress.³ This study was undertaken to assess the level of subjective well-being in nurses.
We performed a descriptive study in an University in Kocaeli, Turkey, during October 2013. The study was conducted by a sample of convenience. Nurses undertaking a one-year master programme for a professional degree in management in hospital and healthcare departments. Participants volunteered to take part in the study. Data were gathered using Personal Information Form and The BBC subjective well-being (BBC-SWB) scale. Participants\' consent was obtained to use their answers for the purpose of this study. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS (SPSS for Windows, version 16.0).
The BBC-SWB scales have been used to identify populations’ general wellbeing.⁴ Respondents were required to select their answer from one of five options that best describes their experience. One item, asking about anxiety and depression, was reversed scored. Higher scores reflect a higher degree of general wellbeing. It has previously been shown to be a reliable and valid measure of subjective well-being in the general population with good psychometric properties.⁴ In this study Cronbach\'s alpha coefficients calculated using the whole sample (n = 160) revealed high levels of internal consistency for the total 24-item scale (Cronbach\'s alpha = 0.90, 24 items).
Mean age of the study participants was 34.9±5.6 years (range: 25-55 years), 92.5% (n=148) of them were female. 77.5% (n=124) of them was married, and 40.0% (n=64) of them was not children, and 90.6% (n=145)of them was worked in the hospital. 32.5% (n=52) of them was job background among 12-16 years.
The mean score was 3.27±0.54; ranging from 2.44±1.08 to 4.19±0.84. Mean scores were of psychological well-being domain 3.29±0.65+, physical health and well-being 3.00±0.68, relationships domain 3.51±0.65.
The mean item score for the BBC-SWB was 3.27±0.54, which was high to those of reported (3.05±0.70) by Pontin et al.⁴ In our study, higher scores (3.51±0.65) came against questions related to relationships. In our study, low scores (3.00±0.68) came against questions related to physical health and well-being and the results were not similar to those done among English populations. However, in that study, low scores came against questions related to general wellbeing.⁴
The subjective well-being was less than ideal in the study population, indicating the need of proper improving the subjective well-being care to maintain a desirable subjective well-being as a first step in nurses. Hospital managers or health care organizations has been made, it is recommended that information on perceptions of the general well being status are evaluated and gathered.

1. New Economic Foundation. Measuring well-being: a guide for practitioners. London: New Economic Foundation; 2012.
2. Milosevic M, Golubic R, Knezevic B, Golubic K, Bubas M, Mustajbegovic J. Work ability as a major determinant of clinical nurses\' quality of life. J Clin Nurs 2011; 20: 2931-8.
3. Chan ZC, Tam WS, Lung MK, Wong WY, Chau CW. A systematic literature review of nurse shortage and the intention to leave. J Nurs Manag 2013; 21: 605-13.
4. Pontin E, Schwannauer M, Tai S, Kinderman P. A UK validation of a general measure of subjective well-being: the modified BBC subjective well-being scale (BBC-SWB). Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2013; 11: 150.