Abstract
Introduction: The health of nurses has a direct impact on the quality of care and health outcomes for patients. The length and quality of sleep as well as the intensity of perceived stress have an impact on the health of nurses. An appropriate stress coping strategy can reduce the impact of stress and mitigate its negative consequences.Aim: The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between excessive sleepiness and insomnia in interaction with selected socio-occupational factors and stress coping strategies among nurses.Material and Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 448 nurses working in hospitals in Podlasie Province in Poland. Mini-Cope inventory - the polish adaptation of Carver's BriefCope was used for measuring coping with stress. Sleep problems were assessed using the Athens Insomnia Scale and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale.Results: The most frequent used coping strategies were active strategies (active coping, planning). The least-used were avoidant strategies (behavioral disengagement, substance use). Excessive sleepiness affected 38% of surveyed, while insomnia 33%. Excessive sleepiness was most strongly related with behavioural disengagement (R2 = 18.6%), substance use (R2 = 17.5%), humour (R2 = 13.8%) and denial (R2 = 12.0%) while insomnia with substance use (R2 = 17.5%) and self-blame (R2 = 15.9%). Nurses with tertiary education experiencing sleep problems less frequently used the strategy of humour, behavioural disengagement, substance use and religion than with lower education. Nurses working in interventional wards experiencing excessive sleepiness used the strategy of humour, religion and positive reframing less often than those working in other wards while those suffering from insomnia used the strategy of humour more often than those working in other wards.Conclusions: The implementation of avoidant and support-seeking and emotion-oriented stress coping strategies by nurses were associated with the sleep problems. Tertiary education discourages nurses with sleep problems from using avoidant coping strategies and devoting themselves to religion. Education and improvement of the quality of sleep may prevent nurses from resorting to stress coping strategies that have a detrimental effect on their health and well-being.
Highlights
The health of nurses has a direct impact on the quality of care and health outcomes for patients
In studies conducted among Polish nurses, from 73.6 to 95.6% of respondents stated that the profession of a nurse is stressful [3, 4]
The aim of the study was to investigate the relationships between insomnia and excessive sleepiness independently and in interaction with socio-occupational factors such as age, type of hospital ward, education and frequency of sick leaves, and the strategies of coping with stress adopted by nurses
Summary
The health of nurses has a direct impact on the quality of care and health outcomes for patients. The exposure of nurses to stress and the constant need to express empathy while providing care to patients are inherent elements of daily work [6, 7]. Factors influencing the perception of occupational stress by nurses include shift work, interpersonal conflicts with other staff members, role conflict, lack of support from doctors, low levels of autonomy as well as low control over their job, rotation between hospital units, and aggressive behaviour of co-workers and patients [8]. The association between stress and negative health outcomes is well-documented. Longterm exposure of nurses to stress has a negative effect on mental health, and leads to behavioural problems [11, 12]. Nurses experiencing high levels of stress and, at the same time, not actively coping with stress had the worst health outcomes and the most risky behaviors to health compared to other nurses [17, 18]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
