PERCEIVED STRESSORS, SATISFIERS, RELIGIOUS ATTITUDES, AND COPING METHODS OF NURSES IN THE CRITICAL CARE WORKPLACE RELATED TO DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS.
Contributors: Loma Linda University.
Published: 1987
Number of pages: 255
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: Purpose. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between critical care nurse perceptions of stressors, satisfiers, religious attitudes, coping methods and certain demographics.

Procedure. The survey instrument was distributed to critical care nurses of Loma Linda University Medical Center (LLUMC). Of the 576 potential nursing participants, 377 (65%) responded with completed questionnaires. Data were examined for inconsistencies and then analyzed by three statistical process: factor analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and canonical correlation analysis.

Findings. Twelve of the nurse respondents' demographic characteristics were significantly related to stress, satisfaction, religious attitudes, and coping methods. For the nurse respondents the largest factors of stress were those events relating to death and depersonalization, dealing with the critically ill, interpersonal relationships, lack of rewards, and lack of knowledge and skills.

Nurse respondents who experienced environmental stress in the work-place, life-event stress, stress from death and depersonalization in the critical care ward and who tried to distance themselves from it be cursing, daydreaming or eating were more likely to have an increased number of sickdays and were more inclined to consider quitting critical care nursing. Minor hassles and the lack of rewards from administration were related to quitting nursing altogether.

In comparison to the younger and less experienced nurse respondents, the older and more experienced critical care nurses appeared to experience decreasing stress from lack of knowledge and skills and from working with the critically ill, but increasing stress from environmental conditions of the workplace, including the lack of a desired spiritual environment.

Conclusions. In the critical care workplace potentially modifiable stressors, satisfiers, and coping methods can be identified, a situation suggestive of ways to reduce hospital costs.

Recommendations. One major recommendation is that nursing administration for LLUMC carefully study the factors that were found to contribute to both an increase in the number of sickdays being taken and the likelihood of quitting critical care nursing, as indicated by the respondents in this study.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 48-08, Section: B, page: 2260.

Thesis (ED.D.)--LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY, 1987.

School code: 0106.