Factors Associated with Quality of Life of Clinical Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Nurses often have a heavy workload and struggle to maintain a good quality of life (QOL). The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between perceived stresses and sleep disturbance, and quality of life among Korean clinical nurses. A cross-sectional design was used to examine these relationships among 200 clinical nurses at three hospitals in South Korea. Standardized instruments were used, including the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ), and the WHOQoL-BREF questionnaire. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the t-test, ANOVA, the Scheffe test, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and multiple regression analysis using SPSS/WIN 24.0 program. Multiple regression analysis showed that clinical nurses who had a subjective health status (ß = 0.29, p = 0.001), perceived stress (ß = -0.32, p < 0.001), and sleep disturbance (ß = -0.21, p = 0.001) were more likely to have a higher quality of life. The explanatory power of the regression model was statistically significant at 36.7%. Multiple regression analysis showed that clinical nurses who had better subjective health status, lower perceived stress, and fewer sleep disturbances were more likely to have a higher quality of life.

Effects of Emotional Labor, Anger, and Work Engagement on Work-Life Balance of Mental Health Specialists Working in Mental Health Welfare Centers.

This study is a descriptive survey aiming to examine the general characteristics, emotional labor, anger, and work engagement of mental health specialists at mental health welfare centers and determine their effects on work-life balance (WLB). A total of 193 mental health specialists from 21 mental health welfare centers at metropolitan cities U and B were enrolled. A self-report and anonymous online questionnaire was used to collect data from 11 March to 1 April 2021. The collected data were analyzed using the t-test, analysis of variance, Scheffé test, Pearson's correlation coefficients, and multiple regressions using SPSS Windows (Ver 25.0). We found that WLB is significantly negatively correlated with emotional labor (r = -0.47, p < 0.001), anger (r = -0.32, p < 0.001), and work engagement (r = 0.37, p < 0.001). The regression model confirmed that the male sex (ß = 0.35, p = 0.002), moderate perceived health (ß = -0.31, p = 0.003), poor perceived health (ß = -0.35, p = 0.020), 1-3 years of career experience at a mental health welfare center (ß = 0.27, p = 0.043), level of attentiveness required in emotional labor (ß = -0.23, p = 0.014), and vigor of work engagement (ß = 0.15, p = 0.005) were predictors of WLB, and these factors explained 43.1% of the variance. Supportive work policies and environments that promote perceived health, reduce emotional labor, and stimulate work engagement are needed to help mental health specialists at mental health welfare centers maintain a good WLB and enjoy a higher quality of life.

Difficulties faced by long-term childhood cancer survivors: A qualitative study.

PURPOSE: Due to improved survival rates of childhood cancer, there has been growing attention to survivors. In addition, experiences of illness in youth, during growth and development, affect the lives of these individuals in numerous ways. With a sample of long-term survivors of childhood cancer, this study investigated their difficult experiences after treatment completion and provided fundamental data for intervention programs that can assist growth. METHODS: Data from 15 survivors aged 15-28 years old were collected through face-to-face interviews; analysis used Giorgi's phenomenological method. RESULTS: The long-term survivors' lives involved a process of struggle to overcome the difficulties. Survivors had physical vestiges of cancer treatments, such as physical strength limitations, appearance changes, and sexual problems. Additionally, they experienced social withdrawal and awkwardness due to adaptation difficulties caused by social life interruption, family issues, social prejudice, and discrimination. These physical and social struggles led to experiences of mental stress and psychological withdrawal, but were followed by rebound. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term survivors of childhood cancer experienced physical, social, and emotional struggles following treatment completion. These results can yield improved understanding of this population, facilitate attention to their challenges, and contribute to their more effective integration into society, helping them live healthy and positive lives.

Ethical concerns of visiting nurses caring for older people in the community.

BACKGROUND: An understanding of the ethical concerns encountered by visiting nurses in the community is needed. Yet, there is a lack of research on this topic. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to explore the ethical concerns that visiting nurses experience when caring for vulnerable older people living in a community. DESIGN AND SAMPLE: A qualitative thematic analysis was used to explore the nature of the ethical issues experienced by visiting nurses (N = 13) who care for vulnerable older people, over 65 years of age, in a South Korean community. METHODS: In-depth interviews were conducted with visiting nurses. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to explore the main themes of the phenomenon. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Chung-Ang University Bioethics Committee in South Korea. RESULTS: Four ethical themes emerged from the qualitative data: (a) quantitative performance rather than quality care, (b) clients being invisible, (c) tuning the level of the relationship with clients, and (d) facing the visiting nurses' own limitations. CONCLUSION: This study provides a theoretical basis to understand the ethical aspects of visiting nurses' interactions with clients, which should facilitate the development of ethical guidelines for visiting nurses to use in making ethical decisions in their practice.