EMOTION-FOCUSED ENHANCED COPING TRAINING: A COGNITIVE-EMOTIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM FOR NURSES WHO CARE FOR THE TERMINALLY ILL.
Contributors: Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Published: 1988
Number of pages: 160
Subjects: Psychology, Clinical.; Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The present work was a clinical investigation of an emotion-focused training program designed to reduce negative stress for hospice nurses and for non-hospice nurses who also care for the terminally ill. While many helping professionals may be at some risk of being negatively affected by stress, it has been suggested that nurses who care for terminally ill patients, and particularly hospice nurses, may be at somewhat greater risk.

A combined, within series A/B/A quasiexperimental design with multiple baselines was used. The effect of the training program for the combined groups, as well as for each group separately, was assessed. Comparisons between two groups of nurses who care for terminally ill patients were made.

Emotion-focused cognitive restructuring strategies and progressive muscle relaxation techniques were taught and practiced in small groups of either hospice, or non-hospice nurses who also care for terminally ill patients. Changes in their levels of perceived stress were assessed on two self report instruments intended to measure the intensity and the frequency of stressful situations. The measures were collected at three one week intervals before treatment, each week for six weeks during the treatment phase, and once each week for three weeks following the treatment.

It was hypothesized that both groups would show significant decreases in their levels of perceived stress as measured by the self report instruments, and this result was obtained. It was further expected that the hospice group may show a greater decline on the intensity measure than the non-hospice group due to a difference in preferred coping style determined by their palliative philosophy. While the data revealed the hospice group to report stress levels higher in both intensity and frequency across all phases of the program, no significant differential rate of reduction was found between the groups.

The results suggested that the emotion-focused enhanced coping training was successful in reducing reported stress for both groups of nurses. It was also suggested that further research is warranted to determine the value of measuring intensity as a separate aspect of stress, to determine the value of the separate components of the program, and to determine the extent to which the effects of the program maintain over time.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-09, Section: B, page: 4009.

Thesis (PSY.D.)--INDIANA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, 1988.

School code: 0318.