Do nurses feel stressed? A perspective from primary health care

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Management
• Psychology

Background:

• Stress is a significant issue for healthcare professionals.
• Primary healthcare settings present unique challenges for nurses.
• Understanding nurse stress is crucial for patient care quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe nurses' stress experiences in Lithuanian primary healthcare.
• To examine correlations between nurse stress and personal factors.
• To identify key stressors in primary care nursing.

Main Methods:

• A quantitative study involving 187 nurses from 18 primary care centers in Lithuania.
• Utilized the Expanded Nursing Stress Scale for data collection.
• Correlational analysis to explore relationships between stress and personal factors.

Main Results:

• Nurses working with adult patients experienced less stress than those with younger patients.
• Top stressors included death/dying and conflicts with physicians, patients, and families.
• Older nurses reported more stress related to death and dying.
• Stress from physician conflicts was linked to age, but work experience was more influential.

Conclusions:

• Death/dying and interpersonal conflicts are major stressors for primary care nurses.
• Age and work experience significantly influence stress perception and intensity.
• Further research is needed on primary healthcare nurse stress and social contexts.