Occupational stress in neurosurgical nursing.

Abstract

Occupational stress in nursing has been a popular topic for investigation. While many practice areas have been studied, the neurosurgical intensive care units (ICUs) and neuromedical/surgical units have largely been overlooked. Using interviews, this exploratory study examined aspects of neurosurgical nursing that were perceived as stressful by staff. Findings suggest that being exposed to life and death situations among young children, being short of essential resources, being on duty with too few staff and dealing with aggressive relatives constituted major stressful events. The frequency of occurrence of stressors was also investigated; working unsocial hours, being short of essential resources, being exposed to life and death situations in adults, and dealing with fluctuations in workload were cited as common happenings. Stressors perceived as having the most effect on work included being exposed to life and death situations among children and adults and being short of essential resources. Comments made by staff suggest that performance at work is adversely influenced by stress. While no neurosurgery-specific stressors were identified, the conclusion from this study is that intensely stressful events do occur in these ICUs and although such events may not happen often, they can adversely affect work performance, according to the staff involved.