Managing Stress

[MoLo]

Curious if stress is more formally addressed and managed in other nursing cultures?

[DavidFR, BSN, MSN, RN]

Speaking from France:

A clinical psycohologist is available for all staff to freely access when needed. I personally found this very useful after I was attacked by a confused patient who threatened to cut me wth broken glass.

Burn out is a recognised phenomenon and people are put on sick leave for that reason if it's recognised by occupational health. Occupational health follow up is obligatory once a year and stress issues will be addressesd (follow up is every 6 months for night staff as we are considered "at risk" posts). 

Low level everyday stress is probably less formally managed and a lot of that will come down to the quality of your colleagues and your manager. A well led and well bonded team will manage stress better that a team that doesn't get on and/or a manager that buries his/her head in the sand.  Regular team meetings where people can freely express themselves are helpful, and I'm glad to say that happens where work. Communual mealtimes are enormously valuable! Dining together is social and sometimes more steam gets let off in break times than is a formal setting.   

[MoLo]

That is great! The availability and follow-up by a trained psychologist is so good, I bet many nurses' wellness and longevity in there positions is attached to this action. And I agree, teamwork makes and breaks the affect of burnout, and the challenges that happen. 

Group dining - so simple, and yet the unit I ran assigned meals separately to minimize the staff off the floor at any one time. I wish I had heard this when I was still in my position - I would be making immediate changes. These are the things that should be a part of management training.

thank you.

[DavidFR, BSN, MSN, RN]

MoLo said:

 

Group dining - so simple, and yet the unit I ran assigned meals separately to minimize the staff off the floor at any one time. I wish I had heard this when I was still in my position - I would be making immediate changes. 

I understand this is an issue in areas where breaks are unpaid and staff leave the unit to go to a distant canteen. If you're only two trained nurses on nights in a small unit for example, you can't both go together.

Our breaks are paid and we're provided with a free meal on duty. We have a staff rest room within the unit where we can eat together and still see the call bell system. It's a single room system in France so we're neither more isolated from nor further away from the patients than when we're in the office or the treatment room, but we are in a private area where they can't see us.  If a bell rings for us - we go. Patients and families are encouraged to ring from their rooms rather than physically come to the office or treatment room. We take a portable phone with us. This sounds like you're constantly disturbed but in reality, you usually get enough time to eat and wind down, especially on nights. On days where they're more numerous they may have a system of going in 2s or 3s to ensure total break time. There's certainly no need for people to be going one at a time.

[Liisa444 BSc]

In my nursing school, we have relational engagement courses with a lot of focus on mindfulness. Also, a requirement of the program is to be set up as a nurse mentor throughout the whole program for support.