Registered Psychiatric Nurses Research Articles

How is ‘shortage’ defined? Exploring Nursing Workforce Data across Canada 2015-2022: An Ecological Study

RationaleDetermining the ability of a country’s nursing workforce to meet the health care needs of the population is essential for optimal health outcomes. ‘Nursing shortage’ is frequently heralded as an issue, yet it is unclear how ‘shortage’ is defined and calculated. The purpose of this study was to collect and link publicly available Canadian data to describe and compare trends in nursing workforce capacity. MethodsPrimary data sources included linking Statistics Canada and Canadian Institutes of Health Information (CIHI) data from 2015 to 2022. Statistics Canada tracks provincial population data and job vacancy rates. CIHI receives data from provincial nursing organizations on demographics, roles, and employment status. To estimate a sufficient workforce, job vacancy rates (a proxy for provincial need) were cross tabulated with the number of registered nurses (RNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) per year. ResultsThe number of RNs and RPNs in Canada has increased by 8.6% between 2015 and 2022, to a total of 322,226. Job vacancies, as a percent of total nursing supply, shows a rising trend (2.3% to 8.7%) between 2015 and 2022 across Canada. In 2022, 84.9% of Canadian RNs and RPNs in direct patient care across Canada and 86.1% were in urban settings. Conclusion & LimitationsThis project examines Canadian nursing workforce data encompassing potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The trends are limited to annual due to aggregated data. Data on a country’s nursing workforce measured monthly and consistently across provinces would yield clearer information.

Mental health nursing practice in rural and remote Canada: Insights from a national survey.

Access to and delivery of quality mental health services remains challenging in rural and remote Canada. To improve access, services, and support providers, improved understanding is needed about nurses who identify mental health as an area of practice. The aim of this study is to explore the characteristics and context of practice of registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs), and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) in rural and remote Canada, who provide care to those experiencing mental health concerns. Data were from a pan‐Canadian cross‐sectional survey of 3822 regulated nurses in rural and remote areas. Individual and work community characteristics, practice responsibilities, and workplace factors were analysed, along with responses to open‐ended questions. Few nurses identified mental health as their sole area of practice, with the majority of those being RPNs employed in mental health or crisis centres, and general or psychiatric hospitals. Nurses who indicated that mental health was only one area of their practice were predominantly employed as generalists, often working in both hospital and primary care settings. Both groups experienced moderate levels of job resources and demands. Over half of the nurses, particularly LPNs, had recently experienced and/or witnessed violence. Persons with mental health concerns in rural and remote Canada often receive care from those for whom mental health nursing is only part of their everyday practice. Practice and education supports tailored for generalist nurses are, therefore, essential, especially to support nurses in smaller communities, those at risk of violence, and those distant from advanced referral centres.

Swedish registered psychiatric nurses' descriptions of presence when caring for women with post‐partum psychosis: An interview study

The concept of nursing presence has been widely used in nursing and is a significant component of nursing practice. In order to increase our understanding of nursing presence, it needs to be studied in different contexts. In this study, a secondary analysis of interviews with 10 registered psychiatric nurses (RPN) in Sweden was conducted to explore nurses' descriptions of presence when caring for women with post-partum psychosis (PPP). Based on the research question: 'How do RPN describe nursing presence in the context of caring for women with PPP?' content analysis was used to analyze the data. Three categories emerged: the use of presence to protect, the use of presence to facilitate recovery, and the use of presence for learning. The findings underscore the importance of recognizing nursing presence as a strategy to improve psychiatric nursing for the benefit of the woman and her child, and as an important part of psychiatric nursing when providing compassionate and effective nursing care to this population.

Nursing Scope of Practice: Descriptions and Challenges

The nursing workforce is faced with shortages of near crisis proportions, yet little is understood about the optimal utilization of various categories of nurses - Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs). The primary purpose in this study was to elicit the perceptions of nurses (RNs, LPNs, and RPNs) of what "working to full scope of practice" meant to them. Participants included acute care nurses in three health regions in western Canada. A key finding from the study was the fact that nurses most often discussed scope of practice by reference to the tasks they perform, rather than the roles they play in healthcare delivery. Assessment and coordination of care were two components of nursing work that most differentiated the three nursing roles. Nonetheless, insufficient role differentiation among nurses and between nurses and other healthcare professionals leaves some nurses feeling devalued and not respected for their contribution to healthcare delivery.

Nursing Workforce Utilization: An Examination of Facilitators and Barriers on Scope of Practice

Several reports have highlighted the need to address underutilization of health human resources, but barriers to and facilitators of role optimization for nurses are poorly understood. The purpose in this study was to understand the perceptions of nurses - Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs) - of the extent to which they can work to full scope of practice and identify barriers and facilitators in optimizing their roles. As part of a mixed-methods study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 167 acute care nurses (RNs, LPNs, RPNs and nurse managers) in three western Canadian health regions. Approximately 48% of all nurses interviewed felt they were working to full scope, at least some of the time. Barriers to working to full scope included heavy workload, high patient acuity, lack of time, poor communication and ineffective teamwork. Identified facilitators were working as a team, management and leadership support and support for continuing education. Barriers need to be addressed in light of nursing shortages, as these are closely related to job satisfaction and directly affect the retention and recruitment of all groups of nurses. Policies and strategies based on these findings must be developed to ensure that nurses can work to their full scope of practice.

Caring for female patients: the experiences of male nurses

This article presents the results of two small qualitative studies, which examined the experiences of six male registered psychiatric nurses (RPN) and five male registered general nurses (RGN) when caring for patients of the opposite sex. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. The focus of the interviews was an attempt to describe the male nurses' experiences of caring for women with a particular emphasis on interventions that involved physical touch. Themes were generated from both studies and the common themes are presented here. Male nurses in this study were often apprehensive about using physical touch and they used coping strategies in response to their fears of being accused of using touch inappropriately. Several factors also influenced the male nurses when using physical touch as an intervention. These findings suggest that learning about caring for female patients needs to be included in the undergraduate curriculum and that further research on the experience of men as nurses is required.

Nursing Human Resources: What Do We Know?

The nursing workforce is an integral part of the Canadian healthcare system and constitutes the largest group within the healthcare workforce in Canada. The Canadian nursing workforce includes three regulated occupational groups that work in a variety of roles and organizations across the continuum of care. These include licensed practical nurses (LPNs), registered nurses (RNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs).1 The composition and practice of the nursing workforce is influenced by both external and internal factors. External factors – such as changing population demographics, new technologies and treatment modalities and changing public expectations – each affect the nursing profession and the clients and patients it serves. Internal factors – such as school enrollment and attrition, work life environment, changing workforce demographics, staff mix and utilization – each influence the supply and distribution of regulated nurses. These factors – more Nursing Human Resources: What Do We Know?

Help Us Chart a Course for Canada's Nursing Professions

Building the Future Over the past two years, many nurse leaders have participated in Building the Future, the first national study led and endorsed by Canada’s nursing stakeholder groups. The study’s overriding goal is to develop an integrated, longterm labour market strategy for Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs). Through interviews, surveys, focus groups and other strategies, the first phase of the study is focused on gathering current, comprehensive information on all aspects of the nursing labour market. These efforts are helping us paint a current picture of nursing human resources, project long-term requirements, develop options to improve retention and recruitment, and assist in developing an integrated strategy for nursing human resources in Canada. We will soon be moving into the second phase of the study, which will involve consultations with provincial governments as well as nursing stakeholder groups to achieve consensus on key issues and possible solutions. The input of nursing leaders will be extremely valuable in this phase. Building the Future urges you to participate and to collaborate with our stakeHelp Us Chart a Course for Canada’s Nursing Professions

Workplace stress among psychiatric nurses. Prevalence, distribution, correlates, & predictors.

Vicarious trauma and burnout are serious manifestations of workplace stress. Both can have substantial consequences for health care professionals, health services, and consumers. This article reports results of a study examining the prevalence, distribution, correlates, and predictors of vicarious trauma and burnout among registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs). A survey was distributed to all practicing RPNs in Manitoba, Canada (N = 1,015). The survey contained the Maslach Burnout Inventory, the Traumatic Stress Institute Belief Scale (i.e., a measure of vicarious trauma), and a section on symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The RPNs were found to be experiencing high levels of emotional exhaustion (i.e., high burnout) and even higher levels of personal accomplishment (i.e., low burnout). No significant differences were found between respondents' total scores on the Traumatic Stress Institute Belief Scale and instrument norms for mental health care professionals. Predictors of burnout and vicarious trauma also are presented in this article. Stress experienced by RPNs, as well as strengths on which to build, clearly are evident in the study results. Strategies for reduction in workplace stress may benefit psychiatric nurses, clients, and health services.