Introduction

Humanized nursing care is the main mission of nurses, which requires not only theoretical and intervention knowledge, but also special emotional skills aimed at improving the quality of nursing care. However, this research topic has been little addressed in the literature, which indicates the need to strengthen and expand knowledge on this matter.

Objective

To describe the relationship between emotional intelligence and nursing care in a public hospital in Mexico.

Materials and Methods

A cross-sectional correlational descriptive study was conducted with a sample of 127 patents. Valid Emotional Quotient Inventories (EQI) and Nurse Caring Behavior Assessment Tools were applied.

Results

A high and significant relationship was found between the two variables (rs=0.816; p=0.001) R2=.704, that is, emotional intelligence is responsible for 70.4% of the variability in nursing care.

Discussion

The results are similar to those found in other studies in which the variables have been researched separately. The importance of emotional intelligence in nursing practice and the perception of care as a good one is evident.

Conclusions

When nurses have an adequate level of emotional intelligence, it will be directly reflected on the quality of nursing care, which indicates the importance of mental health in improving the indicators for quality of nursing care.

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