An integrative review of post-traumatic stress disorder in pediatric nurses

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a concern for healthcare professionals including pediatric nurses. A lack of understanding of the prevalence rates and factors associated with work-related PTSD in pediatric nurses exists.

Articles published in peer-reviewed journals, written in English, focusing on pediatric registered nurses working in inpatient direct-care settings that answered the research questions: (1) describe the prevalence of PTSD in direct-care inpatient pediatric nurses (2) identify factors associated with work-related PTSD were included in this review.

An integrative review method was used. Literature searches within the databases PubMed, CINAHL, Psyc Info, and Cochrane Databases were conducted. Data quality assessment was independently performed by two reviewers.

Eleven articles met criteria for review. PTSD prevalence rates in pediatric nurses ranged from 7.3 % to 37.5 %. Four different tools were utilized to measure PTSD symptomology. Three major themes emerged from the synthesis of objective two: Workforce Factors, Healthcare Environment Factors, and Protective Intrapersonal Factors.

This review highlights PTSD as a concern for nurses working in the pediatric specialty. Thematic analysis and associated subthemes provide a framework for the design of interventions to reduce the risk of PTSD symptom development among nurses working in the pediatric specialty.

Awareness about PTSD in the profession should be further disseminated to direct-care nurses, healthcare leaders, educators, and researchers in the hopes of mitigating future and current PTSD symptomology. Multitargeted efforts directed at the organizational, interpersonal, and intrapersonal factors identified in this review may help mitigate the harmful impacts of PTSD in pediatric nurses.