Introduction
Emergency nurses often care for persons exposed to traumatic events. In the presence
of empathetic caring, nurses exposed to such stressors over time can suffer from Secondary
Traumatic Stress (STS), or Compassion Fatigue (CF). STS symptoms (intrusion, avoidance,
and arousal) may lead to job dissatisfaction or burnout. The purpose of this study
is to investigate the prevalence of STS in emergency nurses.
Methods
Exploratory comparative design, with 67 emergency nurses from three general community
hospitals in California. Survey instruments included a demographic tool and the STS
Survey (STSS).
Results
Nurses were most likely to have Arousal symptoms (irritability reported by 54% of
nurses), followed by Avoidance symptoms (avoidance of patients 52%), and Intrusion
symptoms (intrusive thoughts about patients 46%). The majority of nurses (85%) reported
at least one symptom in the past week. Utilizing Bride’s algorithm to identify STS,
15% of nurses met no criteria, while 33% met all. Nurse participation in stress management
activities was associated with less prevalence of STS symptoms.
Discussion
High prevalence of STS in our sample indicates that potentially large numbers of emergency
nurses may be experiencing the negative effects of STS. Symptoms may contribute to
emotional exhaustion and job separation of emergency nurses. Subsequent studies should
be done to evaluate the association of CF/STS on actual burnout and attrition among
emergency nurses.
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Biography
Elvira Dominguez-Gomez, Inland Empire Chapter, is Emergency Department Nurse, Hemet Valley Medical Center, Hemet, CA.
Biography
Dana N. Rutledge is Associate Professor, Nursing, California State University, Fullerton, CA.
Article info
Publication history
Published online: July 16, 2008
Footnotes
Earn Up to 8 CE Hours. See page 273.
Identification
Copyright
© 2009 Emergency Nurses Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
ScienceDirect
Access this article on ScienceDirectLinked Article
- Secondary Traumatic Stress and Mindfulness TrainingJournal of Emergency NursingVol. 36Issue 1
- PreviewThis year I celebrate 33 years in nursing, 29 years as an emergency nurse, and my final 9 months of graduate school for nursing administration. The recent article by Dominguez-Gomez and Rutledge1 regarding the prevalence of secondary traumatic stress (STS) and compassion fatigue (CF) among emergency nurses was one I can empathize with, and I share a sincere interest in resolving these issues as a nurse leader. Emergency nurses give of themselves to the point of having nothing left to resolve their own emotional needs.
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