Coping styles relate to health and work environment of Norwegian and Dutch hospital nurses:A comparative study

Nurses exposed to high nursing stress report no health complaints as long as they have high coping abilities. The purpose of this study was to investigate coping styles in relation to the health status and work environment of Norwegian and Dutch hospital nurses. This comparative study included a random sample of 5400 Norwegian nurses and a convenience sample of 588 Dutch nurses. Coping, health, and work environment were assessed by questionnaire in both samples and associations were investigated bivariately and multi-variately. We found that active problem-solving coping was associated with the health and work environment of Norwegian nurses but not with the health and work environment of Dutch. Passive coping (avoiding problems or waiting to see what happens) was found to relate to poor general health, poor mental health, low job control, and low job support in both Norwegian and Dutch nurses. Improvements in the nursing work environment may not only result in better mental health, but may also reduce passive coping

Predictors of shift work disorder among nurses a longitudinal study /

Background: Shift work is associated with sleep problems and impaired health. The main aim of the present study was to explore predictors of developing shift work disorder (SWD) among Norwegian nurses using a longitudinal design. Methods: A total of 1533 nurses participating in a survey on shift work, sleep and health responded to questionnaires at baseline and at follow-up about two years later. SWD was defined as problems of excessive sleepiness and/or complaints of insomnia related to the work schedule. Results and Conclusions: There was a significant reduction (p < 0.001) in the prevalence of SWD from baseline to follow-up, from 35.7% to 28.6%. Logistic regression analyses showed significant risks of having SWD at follow-up and the following variables measured at baseline: number of nights worked the last year (OR = 1.01, 95% CI = 1.01–1.02), having SWD (OR = 5.19, 95% CI = 3.74–7.20), composite score on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (OR = 1.08, 95% CI = 1.04–1.13), use of melatonin (OR = 4.20, 95% CI = 1.33–13.33), use of bright light therapy (OR = 3.10, 95% CI 1.14–8.39), and symptoms of depression measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 1.00–1.14). In addition, leaving night work between baseline and follow-up was associated with a significantly reduced risk of SWD atfollow-up (OR = 0.12, 95% CI = 0.07–0.22)

Physical and Mental Fatigue as Predictors of Sickness Absence Among Norwegian Nurses

<p>We investigated whether fatigue can be used to screen nursing populations for risk of sickness absence. Data were available from a prospective cohort study of 2,059 Norwegian nurses working in hospital care, psychiatric care, and nursing home/home care settings. Physical and mental fatigue were measured at baseline with Chalder's Fatigue Questionnaire (FQ). Self-rated sickness absence at 1-year follow-up was considered high if nurses reported >30 sick days in the past year. Physical fatigue accurately predicted high sickness absence and adequately discriminated between high- and low-risk nurses in nursing home/home care settings. Mental fatigue was not predictive in any setting. The FQ is suitable for screening specific nursing populations for the risk of high sickness absence. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 36: 453-465, 2013</p>