Aproximación cualitativa al afrontamiento de la muerte en profesionales de cuidados intensivos

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the factors that interrelate with professional stress associated with the continued care of pain and death among nursing staff of the Intensive Care Unit of the Virgen del Rocío University Hospital (Seville). Material and method Descriptive study with quantitative and qualitative techniques. We use a self-administered anonymous survey consisting of: socio-demographic questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and extensive account of a situation perceived as stressful in relation to the care of pain and death. A total of 18 professionals were included (13 nurses and five nursing assistants). A statistical descriptive analysis of the MBI was carried out on the different sociodemographic variables. From the extensive accounts of a situation perceived as stressful, a qualitative analysis was made by coding the text into meaningful units, followed by a statistical descriptive analysis of these units. Results Only 20% of ICU professionals identified care of pain and death as the main factor of stress. Over 50% of the professionals scored low on the three subscales of the MBI. The factors that interact with stress in the accounts were: 44.4% with a significant concern for family care, 38.9% identified an interpersonal conflict, 22.2% as regards the futility of their work. In 16.7% of cases there was no stress associated with any other factor other than the pain and death for themselves. Colleague support was seen by 5.6% as a protective factor against professional stress. Conclusions Looking after the family of a terminally ill patient is the main concern of critical care professionals, always difficult due to the restricted visiting times. The quality of interpersonal relationships influences the perceived level of stress in any specific situations.