Intensive Care Unit Nurses in Iran: Occupational Cognitive Failures and Job Content

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Occupational Health
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Intensive care unit (ICU) nurses face significant stress due to demanding work environments and high skill requirements, contributing to occupational cognitive failures (OCF).
• Understanding the relationship between OCF and job content (JC) is crucial for improving nurse well-being and performance in critical care settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between occupational cognitive failures (OCF) and job content (JC) among ICU nurses.
• To identify specific aspects of job content that influence cognitive failures in critical care nursing.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was conducted in 2020 involving 267 ICU nurses in Ardabil hospitals.
• Occupational Cognitive Failures (OCF) and Job Content (JC) questionnaires were administered, and data were analyzed using SPSS software.

Main Results:

• Occupational cognitive failures (OCF) were significantly associated with work history in ICU, total work experience, and experience in COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 units.
• OCF showed an inverse relationship with skill discretion and decision authority subscales of job content.
• OCF demonstrated a direct relationship with other subscales of job content.

Conclusions:

• Enhancing nurses' job abilities, reducing task repetition, and fostering work diversity can mitigate cognitive failures.
• Granting nurses greater decision-making authority, providing adequate time, and ensuring a supportive work environment are key to reducing OCF.
• Improving the work environment, supervisor support, and job security are vital for reducing cognitive failures among ICU nurses.