Understanding the Causes of Work-Related Stress among Registered Nurses Working with Children at Home: An Integrative Literature Review
children; community health nursing; nurses; palliative care; work-related stress
Work-related stress in nursing is widely acknowledged. This integrative review was undertaken to systematically identify and appraise the causes of work-related stress experienced by registered nurses working with children at home. Ten studies were included, eight of which focused solely on the experiences of nurses providing palliative and end of life care at home for children. One study focused on the experiences of newly qualified nurses and one on the experiences of nurses caring for sick children at home at different stages within their care trajectory. Stress was experienced by nurses caring for children at home and identified and acknowledged within all included studies. Recurrent themes reported in the literature that contributed to work-related stress were, provision of out of hours care, challenge of developing and maintaining skills (clinical and non-clinical), ambiguity of roles and relationships (professional team and child and family), lack of resources, emotional toll, and lack of staff support. The causes of work-related stress highlighted in this review need to be proactively addressed; thus, providing an opportunity to improve the working experiences of nurses improve job satisfaction and overall wellbeing. A recommendation from this integrative review is for workplaces to identify and invest in effective strategies to prevent or reduce work-related stress.
Lee J; Clarke S; Lynn F
Comprehensive child and adolescent nursing
2021
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1080/24694193.2020.1745325" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1080/24694193.2020.1745325</a>
Exploring the rewards and challenges of paediatric palliative care work - a qualitative study of a multi-disciplinary children's hospice care team
burnout; Child; Children's Hospice; Clinical reflection; Clinical supervision; end of life; hospice care; Hospices; Only Child; Paediatric palliative care; Palliative Care; Qualitative Research; Reward; Staff support; Work-related stress
BACKGROUND: Children's hospices are a key provider of palliative care for children and young people with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. However, despite recent policy attention to the provision of paediatric palliative care, little is known about the role of children's hospice staff and the factors that may impact on their wellbeing at work. This study explored the rewards and challenges of working in a children's hospice with an aim to identify staff support and development needs. METHODS: We conducted an exploratory, qualitative study involving thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 34 staff and three focus groups with 17 staff working in a multi-disciplinary care team in a UK children's hospice. RESULTS: Participants identified rewards and challenges related to the direct work of caring for children and their families; team dynamics and organisational structures; and individual resilience and job motivation. Participants described the work as emotionally intensive and multi-faceted; 'getting it right' for children was identified as a strong motivator and reward, but also a potential stressor as staff strived to maintain high standards of personalised and emotional care. Other factors were identified as both a reward and stressor, including team functioning, the allocation of work, meeting parent expectations, and the hospice environment. Many participants identified training needs for different aspects of the role to help them feel more confident and competent. Participants also expressed concerns about work-related stress, both for themselves and for colleagues, but felt unable to discuss this at work. Informal support from colleagues and group clinical reflection were identified as primary resources to reflect on and learn from work and for emotional support. However, opportunities for this were limited. CONCLUSIONS: Providing regular, structured, and dedicated clinical reflection provides a mechanism through which children's hospice staff can come together for support and learning, and demonstrates an organisational commitment to staff wellbeing and development. Being aware of children's hospice specific rewards and challenges can help to ensure that staff feel supported and competent in their role. Breaking down barriers to discussing work-related stress and enhancing awareness about early signs of burnout is also important.
Taylor J; Aldridge J
Bmc Palliat Care
2017
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-017-0254-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">10.1186/s12904-017-0254-4</a>