RESUMEN
The nursing profession is at a paradigm shifting moment. The cracks in the profession and the health system were exacerbated by the global pandemic of COVID-19 and chronic workforce issues. Nursing must explicitly acknowledge the broken systems and work specifically to address them. Through innovation leadership, health care leaders can identify the issues and create novel solutions to lead nursing into our desired future.
Asunto(s)
COVID-19 , Humanos , COVID-19/epidemiología , Atención a la Salud , Liderazgo , Recursos HumanosRESUMEN
Work cultures supportive of wellness and shorter shift length have been associated with better mental/physical health outcomes in nurses, but how the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted such outcomes is not known. This study's aims were to (1) describe the mental/physical health, well-being, and healthy lifestyle behaviors of nurses during the pandemic; (2) explore the pandemic's impact on their health and healthy lifestyle behaviors; and (3) determine the associations of perceived workplace wellness support and shift length with nurses' health, well-being, and healthy lifestyle behaviors. A cross-sectional descriptive design was used with 264 nurses associated with Trusted Health. Nurses completed a survey containing valid and reliable scales measuring depression, anxiety, burnout and quality of life, perceived wellness culture, and healthy lifestyle behaviors. Results indicated that more than 50% of nurses had worsening mental/physical health relating to the pandemic. Compared with nurses whose workplaces provided little/no wellness support, nurses with workplaces that supported their wellness were 3 to 9 times as likely to have better mental/physical health, no/little stress, no burnout, and high quality of life. Nurses who worked longer shifts had poorer health outcomes. These findings indicate that workplace wellness support and shorter shifts positively impacted nurse mental/physical health and professional quality of life amidst the pandemic.