Impact of job burnout on mental health among social workers in public and private sector in Greece

Purpose: This study examines the impact of job burnout on the social workers’ mental health in public and private sector. Material and Method: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in which 103 social workers who were working in public (n=56) and private (n=47) sector of the Thessaly region in Greece. Data were collected with a questionnaire including socio-demographic and work-related characteristics, the Maslach Burnout Inventory - Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28). Independent t-test, anova and Pearson coefficient were used in statistical analysis. Results: Emotional exhaustion was positively related to somatic symptoms (r=0.470, p<0.001), anxiety/insomnia (r=0.429, p<0.001), social dysfunction (r=0.365, p<0.001), depression (r=0.252, p=0.010) and overall mental burden (r=0.518, p<0.001) of social workers. Personal achievements were negatively related to somatic symptoms (r=-0.326, p=0.001), anxiety/insomnia (r=-0.266, p=0.007), social dysfunction (r=-0.321, p=0.001), depression (r=-0.444, p<0.001) and overall mental burden (r=-0.444, p<0.001). Also, depersonalization was positively associated with somatic symptoms (r=0.218, p=0.027), anxiety/insomnia (r=0.317, p=0.001) and overall mental burden (r=0.258, p=0.009). Conclusion: All dimensions of burnout had a significant effect on mental health disorders of social workers in labo

Rating of Patient Satisfaction Factors in a Clinical Hyperbaric Centre of a Greek Navy Hospital

Background: Modern medical technology has promoted the creation and improved the organization of Diving and Hyperbaric Medical Units (DHMU).Objective: This study evaluates patient satisfaction regarding services provided by the DHMU’s in Attica, Greece.Material and Method: This is a descriptive study, its sample constitutes of 91 patients admitted at the DHMU of Navy for Hyperbaric Oxygen (HBO) therapy. For the collection of data an anonymous selfadministered, 2-part questionnaire was utilized. The first part consisted of questions recording sociodemographicdata, while the second constituted of questions investigating the satisfaction of patients from the DHMU with a five-point Likert scale. The data was analyzed using SPSS (ver 17).Results: A total of 91 patients (53 male, 38 female) with a mean age of 35.5 years, sd=+/-7.245 participated in the study. Most of them 44% were university graduates. Patients’ satisfaction from theservices provided at DHMU was up to 85.7%, while 87.6% of them highly appreciated the prompt initiating and availability of sessions and rated telephone communication with the DHMU as exceptional. Personnel were described by patients as polite (94.4%), respectful (95.6%) and discrete (94.5%). The 92% of patients understood the importance of abiding by the rules of safety from nurses. Gender, age and the number or treatments were the characteristics that correlated statistically withpatients’ satisfaction from the services provided at a Greek Diving and Hyperbaric Medical Unit.Conclusion: The patients rated care and access to the particular D.H.M.U. as most excellent. Greek patients experience great satisfaction from the Naval Diving and Hyperbaric Medical Unit

Body image, emotional intelligence and quality of life in peritoneal dialysis patients

Background: End-stage-renal-disease is one of the most common chronic diseases, and peritoneal dialysis constitutes one of the replacement therapies. The aim of this study was to investigate the views of patients on peritoneal dialysis regarding their body image, to assess their quality of life and level of emotional intelligence. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed with structured questionnaires. The sample of the study was the patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis and monitored by the nephrology clinics of 7 public hospitals in Greece. Results: A total of 102 completed questionnaires were collected and analyzed (68% response rate). The participants showed moderate degree of body-image dysphoria (mean = 1.29, SD = 0.94), moderate levels of emotional intelligence and experienced moderate quality of life. According to the statistical analysis, women reported worse body image (p = 0.013) and university graduates showed higher levels of emotionality (p = 0.016). The correlations between the quality of life questionnaire subscales and demographic characteristics revealed statistically significant relationships between marital status and the Physical Functionality subscale, where unmarried people had a better quality of life in this subscale (p = 0.042) and between postgraduate/doctoral degree holders and the subscale Patient Satisfaction (p = 0.035). Also, statistically significant relationships were found between occupation and the Social Interaction subscale, where those engaged in household activities and were unemployed (p = 0.022) showed better quality of life. Participants living in semi-urban areas had better quality of life on the subscale Burden of Kidney Disease (p = 0.034). Conclusion: ESRD patients on peritoneal dialysis suffer significant limitations related to disease and treatment modality. According to our findings, these affect both their body image as well as their quality of life. Improvement in emotional intelligence is the factor which plays an important mediating role in improving both body image and quality of life in patients on peritoneal dialysis

O R I G I N A L P A P E R Investigation of Anxiety and Burn-Out in Medical and Nursing Staff of Public Hospitals of Peloponnese

Abstract Background: Nowadays, anxiety and burnout of medical and nursing staff is identified more and more as one of the factors that affect aspects of their personal and professional life. Aim: The aim of this research study was to investigate the self-evaluation of anxiety and burnout in medical and nursing staff of public hospitals in Peloponnese. Methodology : Two questionnaires were given to a sample of 284 doctors, nurses and assistant nurses from two hospitals: the "State-Trait Anxiety Inventory" (STAI) by Spielberger and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) that assesses the three dimensions of burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal fulfillment. The statistical analysis was performed using the statistical package SPSS, version 19.0. The level of statistical significance of the results was p<0.05. Results: Doctors and nurses are dominated by moderate emotional anxiety and increased burnout. The stressful situation seems to be interpreted mainly in the light of a dynamic interaction between the person and the working environment. The adverse working conditions, that characterize the health sector, seem to intensify the stress and overwhelm them emotionally and professionally. Conclusions: The anxiety and burnout of doctors, nurses and assistant nurses working at both hospitals is increased and expressed with feelings of depersonalization and emotional exhaustion. The formulation of a program of emotional support and strengthening of medical and nursing staff is required

The GenTree Dendroecological Collection, tree-ring and wood density data from seven tree species across Europe

The dataset presented here was collected by the GenTree project (EU-Horizon 2020), which aims to improve the use of forest genetic resources across Europe by better understanding how trees adapt to their local environment. This dataset of individual tree-core characteristics including ring-width series and whole-core wood density was collected for seven ecologically and economically important European tree species: silver birch (Betula pendula), European beech (Fagus sylvatica), Norway spruce (Picea abies), European black poplar (Populus nigra), maritime pine (Pinus pinaster), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), and sessile oak (Quercus petraea). Tree-ring width measurements were obtained from 3600 trees in 142 populations and whole-core wood density was measured for 3098 trees in 125 populations. This dataset covers most of the geographical and climatic range occupied by the selected species. The potential use of it will be highly valuable for assessing ecological and evolutionary responses to environmental conditions as well as for model development and parameterization, to predict adaptability under climate change scenarios

The importance of being a compassionate leader: the views of nursing and midwifery managers from around the world

Introduction: Despite the importance of compassionate leadership in health care, many of the existing publications do not account for the effect of culture. The aim of this study is to explore the views of nursing and midwifery managers from different countries in relation to the definition, advantages, and importance of compassion. Methodology: A cross-sectional, descriptive, exploratory online survey was conducted across 17 countries, containing both closed and open-ended questions. Data from N = 1,217 respondents were analyzed using a directed hybrid approach focusing only on qualitative questions related to compassion-giving. Results: Four overarching themes capture the study’s results: (1) definition of compassion, (2) advantages and importance of compassion for managers, (3) advantages and importance of compassion for staff and the workplace, and (4) culturally competent and compassionate leadership. Discussion: Innovative research agendas should pursue further local qualitative empirical research to inform models of culturally competent and compassionate leadership helping mangers navigate multiple pressures and be able to transculturally resonate with their staff and patients

Socially assistive robots in health and social care: Acceptance and cultural factors. Results from an exploratory international online survey

Aim: This study explored the views of an international sample of registered nurses and midwives working in health and social care concerning socially assistive robots (SARs), and the relationship between dimensions of culture and rejection of the idea that SARs had benefits in these settings. Methods: An online survey was used to obtain rankings of (among other topics) the extent to which SARs have benefits for health and social care. It also asked for free text responses regarding any concerns about SARs. Results: Most respondents were overwhelmingly positive about SARs' benefits. A small minority strongly rejected this idea, and qualitative analysis of the objections raised by them revealed three major themes: things might go wrong, depersonalization, and patient‐related concerns. However, many participants who were highly accepting of the benefits of SARs expressed similar objections. Cultural dimensions of long‐term orientation and uncertainty avoidance feature prominently in technology acceptance research. Therefore, the relationship between the proportion of respondents from each country who felt that SARs had no benefits and each country's ratings on long‐term orientation and uncertainty avoidance were also examined. A significant positive correlation was found for long‐term orientation, but not for uncertainty avoidance. Conclusion: Most respondents were positive about the benefits of SARs, and similar concerns about their use were expressed both by those who strongly accepted the idea that they had benefits and those who did not. Some evidence was found to suggest that cultural factors were related to rejecting the idea that SARs had benefits

The GenTree Platform: growth traits and tree-level environmental data in 12 European forest tree species

Background: Progress in the field of evolutionary forest ecology has been hampered by the huge challenge of phenotyping trees across their ranges in their natural environments, and the limitation in high-resolution environmental information. Findings: The GenTree Platform contains phenotypic and environmental data from 4,959 trees from 12 ecologically and economically important European forest tree species: Abies alba Mill. (silver fir), Betula pendula Roth. (silver birch), Fagus sylvatica L. (European beech), Picea abies (L.) H. Karst (Norway spruce), Pinus cembra L. (Swiss stone pine), Pinus halepensis Mill. (Aleppo pine), Pinus nigra Arnold (European black pine), Pinus pinaster Aiton (maritime pine), Pinus sylvestris L. (Scots pine), Populus nigra L. (European black poplar), Taxus baccata L. (English yew), and Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl. (sessile oak). Phenotypic (height, diameter at breast height, crown size, bark thickness, biomass, straightness, forking, branch angle, fructification), regeneration, environmental in situ measurements (soil depth, vegetation cover, competition indices), and environmental modeling data extracted by using bilinear interpolation accounting for surrounding conditions of each tree (precipitation, temperature, insolation, drought indices) were obtained from trees in 194 sites covering the species’ geographic ranges and reflecting local environmental gradients. Conclusion: The GenTree Platform is a new resource for investigating ecological and evolutionary processes in forest trees. The coherent phenotyping and environmental characterization across 12 species in their European ranges allow for a wide range of analyses from forest ecologists, conservationists, and macro-ecologists. Also, the data here presented can be linked to the GenTree Dendroecological collection, the GenTree Leaf Trait collection, and the GenTree Genomic collection presented elsewhere, which together build the largest evolutionary forest ecology data collection available