Health and well-being in care staff and their relations to organizational and psychosocial factors, care staff and resident factors in nursing homes

✍ Scribed by I. Testad; A. Mikkelsen; C. Ballard; D. Aarsland

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 130 KB
• Volume: 25
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0885-6230
• DOI: 10.1002/gps.2419

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study is to investigate the association of psychosocial factors and patient factors with stress in care staff in nursing homes.

Methods

In this cross‐sectional survey, 197 care staff from 13 dementia wards from four nursing homes in the Stavanger region, Norway, participated. Stress in care staff was measured by Perceived Stress Scale, Hopkins Symptom Check List, and subjective health complaints. Agitation in patients was measured with the Cohen‐Mansfield Agitation Inventory. Work‐related psychosocial factors were measured by General Nordic Questionnaire for Psychosocial and Social Factors at Work (QPSNordic). Data were analyzed using multivariate regression analyses.

Results

Psychosocial factors (QPS Nordic) were significantly associated with all the three outcome measures of stress in care staff, whereas agitation was associated with subjective health complaints only. QPS Nordic subscales significantly associated with stress in care staff were those associated with leadership.

Conclusions

Psychosocial factors were more important predictors of carer stress than patient‐related factors such as dementia severity and agitation. The findings provide key background information in the planning of interventions to improve conditions for care staff and ultimately for nursing home residents. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.