Subject(s)
Workplace , Humans , Workplace/standards , Occupational Health/standards , Nursing Staff, Hospital , Working ConditionsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The health of nurse work environments has been shown to affect both patient and nurse outcomes. In 2005, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses published the AACN Standards for Establishing and Sustaining Healthy Work Environments: A Journey to Excellence, and a second edition was published in 2016. The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses conducted critical care nurse work environment studies in 2006, 2008, 2013, 2018, and, most recently, October 2021, which was expanded to include registered nurses in all areas of practice. OBJECTIVE: To report the results of the October 2021 study with comparisons to previous studies and recommendations for continued improvement and to evaluate the current state of nurse work environments. METHODS: An online survey was used. A total of 9862 registered nurses responded to the survey; 9335 met the study criteria of currently practicing as a registered nurse. RESULTS: The health of nurse work environments has declined dramatically since the 2018 study. However, as in 2018, evidence of a positive relationship exists between implementation of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses Healthy Work Environment Standards and the health of nurse work environments, between the health of nurse work environments and job satisfaction, and between job satisfaction and the intent of nurses to leave their current positions or to stay. CONCLUSION: It is time for bold, intentional, and relentless efforts to create and sustain healthy work environments that foster excellence in patient care and optimal outcomes for patients, nurses, and other members of the health care team.
Subject(s)
Nursing Staff, Hospital , Workplace , Employment , Humans , Job Satisfaction , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Nurses caring for critically ill adults are challenged to balance patient comfort with the risk of complications associated with analgesic therapy. Evidence gathered since 2013, when the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) published the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Pain, Agitation, and Delirium in Adult Patients in the Intensive Care Unit, known as the PAD guidelines, gave rise to the SCCM 2018 publication of the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Management of Pain, Agitation/Sedation, Delirium, Immobility, and Sleep Disruption in Adult Patients in the ICU, known as the PADIS guidelines. This article discusses how the PADIS guidelines go beyond the PAD guidelines, providing specific guidance related to risk factors for pain, the assessment and management of pain in critical illness, and the ways in which the experience of pain in critical illness is intertwined with that of agitation, delirium, immobility, and sleep disruption. Tables summarize the key points in the PADIS guidelines, clarify the distinctions between PADIS and PAD, and describe the implications for nurses.
