Stress is a customary and identified question within the nursing profession. According to Atkinson stress occurs when one is faced with events or encounters that they realize as an endangerment to their physical or psychological well being (as sited in McGowan, 2001). Additionally stress levels will increase when controllability and predictability in a situation decrease. There is an inverse association in the middle of stress and job satisfaction, as stress goes up, job delight falls. As a result this increased stress could commonly results in decreased job delight and decreased ability of life. This could potentially conduce to nurses leaving the profession and as an end consequence, account for the current nursing shortage.
The cause of stress for nurses has found to be related to the nature of the profession. Included in these stressors are an intense work environment with extended work hours, weekends, night and holidays. According to Ruggiero (2003) stress could be related to variables of shift work, which is both physically and mentally taxing. This study also found varying degrees of depression in nurses fluctuating from mild to severe. Finally this study revealed that nurses were indifferent and disconnected to the job by feeling neither satisfied or unsatisfied with the work. Results such as these expose how large a question stress is for the profession of nursing.
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Factors of the intense emotional withhold that is needed for the inpatient and house is yet someone else burden of stress settled on nurse. In addition, exposures to pain, suffering and traumatic life events that the nurse caress on a daily basis can conduce to stress (Cohen-Katz, Capuano, Baker, & Shapiro, 2005). These concerns can lead to emotional exhaustion for nurses.
The lack of organizational withhold and involvement, which are face of the control of nurses can greatly sway job delight (McGowan, 2001). There is also a lack of control and power in an environment predominantly controlled by physicians. These stressors can conduce to psychological exhaustion and increased stress.
Consequently this leads to the inquire of what supportive interventions have been implemented for nurse, to decrease their stress thereby expanding their coping mechanisms. Would the availability of stress reducing programs conduce to coping mechanism and increase job satisfaction? Additionally how effective are these interventions?
In my preliminary search for stress interventions I encountered many studies settled in the Ovid database that site stress in nursing and other related condition care field. Key words such as stress management, burnout, job satisfaction, nursing retention, ability of life, environment and alternative therapies were utilized for this search. These studies revealed definitions of stress and countless and discrete causes and explanations for the stress experienced by nurses and other condition care workers.
There were comparative studies in the middle of separate nursing backgrounds and environment. For example medical-surgical nursing verses home-health nursing (Salmond & Ropis, 2005), which examined and compared the differences in both backgrounds. Finally it found both areas of practice had their own version of stress and it identified common stressors. Unfortunately no concrete measures were utilized to combat the problem
There were also illustrations comparing separate styles of management and how nursing stress is affected. Magnet organizations were compared with traditional assosication (Upenieks, 2003). The results of this singular study did prove that certain and supportive management could make a distinction in the levels of stress but again no specific stress intervention measures were used
There is a clear recognition and acknowledgement of the question of stress in nursing but there is a considerable lack of data that assuredly addressed the question with inherent certain interventions. The few studies discovered were all found to show certain results to some degree. These findings withhold the certain outcome that the initiation of actual stress interventions or programs within the workplace can offer.
The first study used the physical intervention of massage therapy over a 5 week period for nurses in a hospital premise (Bost & Wallis, 2006). This intervention was identified to sell out stress as well as withhold nurses individually and organizationally. The effects measured were physical and psychological. The study found no change in the physical findings of blood pressure and urinary cortisol levels, any way there was decrease in the State-Trait Anxiety account (Stai) in the medicine group compared to the control group. Although there was no physical benefits measured it did sell out the psychological effects of stress. These results suggest that gift the intervention of massage therapy is useful in decreasing anxiety levels, which in turn could sell out stress.
The other interventions researched complex a more interactive process. These studies called upon the motivation of the participants or nurses to take part in the intervention. The involvement of these nurse participants supports a need to decrease stress by their desire to assist in production changes internally that will sway them externally.
The use of mantra to relieve stress was one of these interventions. This examined the effectiveness of using a mantra or repeated mantra to sway the level of stress and emotional and spiritual well being. Mantra utilization was taught to condition care workers through a 5-part intervention schedule offered through the hospital prior to the study (Bormann et al., 2006). This is a good example of a valid and tangible intervention that can be offered to increase coping mechanism while decreasing stress. The findings supported the certain results of this study by showing a considerable reduction in perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale), trait anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), and trait anger (State-Trait Anger Inventory) post intervention. There was also an increase in ability of life and existential and total spiritual well-being.
Mindfulness-Based Stress reduction (Mbsr) schedule was a series of quantitative and qualitative studies offered and taught within the hospital work environment. This schedule specifically addressed the issue of stress for nurses. Mbsr is based on the belief of becoming mindful and fully gift in the moment without judgment (Cohen-Katz et al., 2005). The study measured levels of burnout, emotional exhaustion, emotional overextension and psychological distress.
This singular intervention schedule not only decreased the stress level post medicine but the control group also experienced a advantage prior to medicine while waiting for the program. This could be related to the desire to sell out stress in expectation of participating in the program. This additional withhold the need nurses have to make changes for the better by decreasing stress levels.
This Mbsr study again found a reduction in emotional exhaustion and an increased feeling of personal accomplishment in the medicine group post intervention. Furthermore these effects led to a decrease in stress that had a persisting sway over a three-month period. This validates the certain effects of the use of this intervention in the reduction of stress.
A third certain interactive intervention study was a program, which offered a conflict-management training class in order to decrease inherent stress for employees in condition care organizations. This singular study also supported the need to offer a way to prevent or decrease stress by creating a certain environment through personal empowerment. There was a considerable reduction pretest and posttest in role overload, interpersonal strain, role boundaries and psychological strain. The participants reported that they were better able to find balance in their position and were able to administrate the demands of their job (Haraway & Haraway, 2005). These findings confirm the need to make available even brief interventions such as this in an effort to sell out conflict. This could in turn sell out stress and increase perceived control and empowerment, which increases job satisfaction. Furthermore this would enhance work environment by production it more supportive
All of these programs discussed, offered intervention for at least one aspect of inherent stress factors. Reducing physical or emotional stress and gift more control and empowerment while creating a more certain working environment are all flourishing interventions to increase job satisfaction. Consequently increased job delight leads to decreased stress. The results of this study suggest a strong link was identified in the middle of the two issues (Ruggiero, 2003).
There is a common thread within all these interventions. They are available and effective interventions that can be implemented to become a part of nursing practice and other condition care workers in many separate condition care settings. These actual structured group interventions could be more effective to generate a decrease in stress individually. Programs such as these have a proven value and are a simple easy and relatively reasonable intervention. gift them to nurses and other condition care employees could be considered a inhibitive part for inherent stress.
In expanding these findings substantiate the need for quarterly stress reduction programs to be offered through hospitals and other curative employment organizations. The use of these and similar programs provide a far reaching advantage for the nursing profession. Anticipatory measures for the reduction of stress can increase job satisfaction, potentially increase nursing retention. Goals for these programs could comprise guidance in the stress management techniques, increase collective support, open communication, role strengthening and empowerment and personel increase to fully utilize certain interventions (Cohen-Katz et al., 2005).
Future studies in programs for stress intervention should comprise additional similar studies offered to a larger sample with long term and ongoing evaluations of their effectiveness. Consideration of other alternative adjunct intervention therapies that assist in stress reduction could be examined such as yoga and mediation. The use of these physically and emotionally stress-reducing techniques may also be effective in stress lessening and coping measures increasing.
It is my hope that in the hereafter interventions to prevent stress in nurses and condition care workers will be offered as a accepted part of a advantage box within all condition care organizations. Stress arresting can be a win-win situation where every person will benefit. Nurses will have decreased stress and increased coping mechanism, which will increase job satisfaction. This could lead to increased nurse retention. Subsequently as result of this contentment and increased ability of life the nurse will be a first-rate laborer and better able to provide care for themselves and their patients.
References
Bormann, J. E., Becker, S., Gershwin, M., Kelly, A., Pada, L., & Smith, T. L. Et al. (2006). association of frequent mantram repetition to emotional and spiritual well-being in healthcare workers. The Journal of persisting schooling in Nursing, 37(5), 218-224. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from Ovid data base
Bost, N., & Wallis, M. (2006). The effectiveness of a 15 tiny weekly massage in reducing physical and psychological stress in nurses. Australian Journal of advanced Nursing, 23(4), 28-33. Retrieved September 6, 2006, from Ovid data base
Cohen-Katz, J., Capuano, T., Baker, D. M., & Shapiro, S. (2005). The effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on nurse stress and burnout, part Ii. Holistic Nursing Practice, , 26-35. Retrieved September 27, 2006, from Ovid data base
Haraway, D. L., & Haraway, W. M. (2005). Pathology of the result of conflict-management and resolution training on laborer stress at a healthcare organization. Hospital Topics: study and Perspectives on Healthcare, , 11-17. Retrieved October 28, 2006, from Ovid data base
McGowan, B. (2001). Self-reported stress and it's effects on nurses. Nursing Standard, 15(42), 33-38. Retrieved September 28, 2006, from Ovid data base
Ruggiero, J. S. (2003). Health, work variables, and job delight among nurses. Jona, 35(5), 254-263. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from Ovid data base
Salmond, S. & Ropis, P. E. (2005). Job stress and normal well-being: a comparative study of medical-surgical and home care nurses. Retrieved September 28, 2006, from Ovid data base
Upenieks, V. V. (2003). The interrelationship of organizational characteristics of magnet hospitals, nursing leadership, and nursing job satisfaction. condition Care Manager, 22(2), 83-98. Retrieved September 27, 2006, from Ovid data base
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