A year after COVID‐19: Its impact on nurses' psychological well‐being

Abstract

Background Nurses' burnout and psychological well‐being are a significant concern during the pandemic. Aims The aim of this study is to (i) examine the level of burnout, anxiety, depression, perceived stress and self‐rated health for nurses at two time‐points, 2020 and 2021, and (ii) examine the socio‐demographic characteristics, work‐related factors and perceived workplace support factors in relation to the level of burnout. Methods This is a cross‐sectional study with a longitudinal approach. A convenience sample of registered nurses who worked in an acute care tertiary hospital in Singapore were surveyed during two time‐points. Participants' health, socio‐demographic characteristics, work‐related factors and perceived workplace support factors were collected. Results Among the 179 nurses, there was a significant increase in burnout level, poorer self‐rated health and reduced job dedication. A decrease in the percentage of nurses who felt appreciated at work was reported in 2021 ( p = 0.04). Nurses who felt their team was not working well together were 3.30 times more likely to experience burnout (95% CI 1.12 to 9.69; p = 0.03). Nurses who reported that they never felt appreciated by their department/hospital were 8.84 times more likely to experience burnout (95% CI 2.67 to 29.21; p < 0.001). Nurses with poorer self‐rated health were more likely to report burnout (95% CI: 1.32–6.03; p = 0.008). Conclusion Nurses had an increased experience of burnout, reduced job dedication and poorer self‐rated health after the outbreak. Implications for Nursing Management Interventions at the departmental and organizational levels are needed to improve the workplace support. Strategies to support nurses' psychological well‐being during the aftermath of COVID‐19 are vital to managing nurses' burnout and improving job dedication and self‐rated health.

Suicidal ideation, perception of personal safety, and career regret among emergency medicine residents during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…The results of our study contribute to a growing body of literature highlighting the significant impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the mental health of resident physicians 29 and other health care providers. 30 Future work is necessary to better describe the long-term effects of the pandemic on trainees and other members of the health care team.…”

Nurses' job burnout after the first peak of COVID-19 in Northeast China: a descriptive study

“…There are few studies on the peak of COVID-19. Research shows that 20 to 30 years old [8], female [8], single [9], childless [10], bachelor's degree [10], not appreciated by leaders [11], uneven workload [12], night shift nurses [13], fear of infection [14,15], worry about whether family members are infected [13] are all risk factors for job burnout of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nurses working at the peak of COVID-19 not only need to take into account the heavier work pressure than before, but also need to often face patients with poor medical effect, imminent end of life, and ethical and moral problems [16].…”

Relationships between leadership behaviour of nurse managers and nurses' levels of job satisfaction and compassion fatigue during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…This situation caused them to work under intense stress (Alan et al, 2021 ; Murat et al, 2021 ). As a result, nurses working in pandemic wards and intensive care units experienced negative outcomes such as decreased job satisfaction and increased burnout and compassion fatigue (Aloweni et al, 2022 ; Xia et al, 2022 ). For better performance and patients' quality of care and safety is essential to minimize these negative outcomes and to improve the organizational well‐being of nurses (Della Bella et al, 2022 ).…”

“…In addition, studies have reported a high prevalence of compassion fatigue in nurses during the pandemic (Storm & Chen, 2021 ; Wang et al, 2022 ). Therefore, the COVID‐19 pandemic caused deleterious effects on frontline nurses' mental health (Aloweni et al, 2022 ; Murat et al, 2021 ). In this way, nurse managers' leadership behaviours become even more important in crises such as COVID‐19 that involve fear and uncertainty.…”

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Among the occupational groups most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses have encountered many difficulties in patient care and have been exposed to many sources of stress (Aloweni et al, 2022;Murat et al, 2021). With a higher risk of infection compared to the rest of the population, nurses have experienced anxiety due to many factors, including limited rest, an insufficient number of personal protective equipment, increasing in workload and working hours, changes in the units or institutions where they work, experiencing unprecedented working conditions and the risk of transmitting or spreading the virus to their families (Labrague & De los Santos, 2021;Rossettini et al, 2022).

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