Well‐being in acute care nurse managers: A risk analysis of physical and mental health factors

Abstract

Background Nurse managers have experienced tremendous stress during the COVID‐19 pandemic, contributing to negative psychological outcomes. Positive professional well‐being is a construct that can be promoted to mitigate poor psychological outcomes and burnout in nurses. Little is known about the health, healthy behaviors, effects of stress on homelife, and well‐being of nurse managers in the United States (U.S.). Aims The aims of the study were to explore nurse managers’ well‐being related to self‐reported stress and health perceptions and habits. Methods A sample of 80 (41% response rate) nurse managers responded to a cross‐sectional web‐based survey sent via email in a southwestern U.S. 13‐hospital system. Nurses answered 39 quantitative questions about demographics, well‐being (9‐item Well‐Being Index [WBI]), perceptions of stress affecting homelife, and perceptions of health and health‐related behaviors. Results Mean WBI (2.9 [2.7]) indicated risk for poor psychological outcomes. Managers (75%) reported stress from work affected their personal lives and a decline in overall health during the pandemic. Most (80%) reported burnout and emotional problems. Nurse managers had 8.1 times increased risk of poor WBI scores if stress from work affected their personal life than if they reported no spillover stress into their personal life (OR = 8.1, 95% CI [2.6, 25.0]). Linking Evidence to Action Findings from this study add a nuanced understanding of nurse managers’ well‐being. The strongest risk factor for poor WBI scores was stress levels affecting personal life. Interventions to improve well‐being in nurse managers are needed. Limitations are the convenience sampling, limited geographic location, and response rate of <50%. Further research is needed to support nurse managers in stress reduction and development of boundaries that prohibit the spillover effect of workplace stress. Organizations may consider a combination of administrative support and changes as well as provision of on‐the‐job training of interventions that support individual well‐being.

Covid-19 pandemic? Mental health implications among nurses and Proposed interventions

“…The findings revealed high levels of stress, with many nursing managers experiencing work-related stress spilling over into their personal lives, thus contributing to burnout and emotional problems. The study highlighted the need for interventions to improve the well-being of nursing managers, including administrative support and policy changes [67] .…”

Status and influencing factors of work stress among nurse managers in western China: a cross-sectional survey study

“…The working ward with the highest stress load in this study was the emergency department. The nature and working environment of different departments can affect the pressure and organizational support of nursing staff [ 37 ]. From the perspective of sudden public health emergencies, emergency medical staff on the front line of hospitals face higher occupational exposure risks, work overload, and serious psychological impact.…”

Acute care nurse managers' definitions of and barriers to well‐being: A thematic analysis of open‐ended survey questions

“…answers to two open-ended survey questions collected as a part of a larger research study with acute care NMs (Martin et al, 2023).…”

“…In the larger study, participants completed a web-based survey consisting of questions regarding their demographic and work characteristics, the Well-being Index for Nurses, and questions about their personal health perceptions and habits. Quantitative study results from these questions were analyzed separately and reported in (Martin et al, 2023). Participants also were asked to complete two open-ended short-answer questions in the survey with no character limit imposed.…”