Perceptions of job stress

The experiences of the first graduate children's nurses to qualify on Part 15 of the UKCC Register were drawn on for this study. The literature shows that stress is more prevalent in newly qualified staff nurses. In order to provide optimum support, awareness of the particular factors that create stress at this time is vital. There was a chronological dimension to the stress experience of the children's nurses', which began with an initial feeling of survival and ended with a sense of equilibrium. Situations which would have initially evoked stress were no longer perceived as stressful as their confidence grew. Towards the end of the year, any specific stressful events were associated with increased managerial responsibilities or beginning a new job. The nurses consistently reported increased stress when dealing with a number of specific situations.