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Managing well-being in paediatric critical care: a multiperspective qualitative study of nurses' and allied health professionals' experiences.
- Source :
-
BMJ open [BMJ Open] 2024 May 28; Vol. 14 (5), pp. e084926. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 May 28. - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Objectives: It is well evidenced that healthcare professionals working in paediatric critical care experience high levels of burn-out, compassion fatigue and moral distress. This worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. This work examines the nature of challenges to workplace well-being and explores what well-being means to staff. This evidence will inform the development of staff interventions to improve and maintain staff well-being.<br />Design: Qualitative study.<br />Setting: Paediatric critical care units in the UK.<br />Participants: 30 nurses and allied health professionals took part in online interviews and were asked about well-being and challenges to well-being. Lived experiences of well-being were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis.<br />Results: Themes generated were as follows: perception of self and identity; relationships and team morale; importance of control and balance and consequences of COVID-19. They focused on the impact of poor well-being on participants' sense of self; the significance of how or whether they feel able to relate well with their team and senior colleagues; the challenges associated with switching off, feeling unable to separate work from home life and the idealised goal of being able to do just that; and lessons learnt from working through the pandemic, in particular associated with redeployment to adult intensive care.<br />Conclusions: Our findings align closely with the self-determination theory which stipulates autonomy, belonging and competence are required for well-being. Participants' accounts supported existing literature demonstrating the importance of empowering individuals to become self-aware, to be skilled in self-reflection and to be proactive in managing one's own well-being. Change at the individual and staff group level may be possible with relatively low-intensity intervention, but significant change requires systemic shifts towards the genuine prioritisation of staff well-being as a prerequisite for high-quality patient care.<br />Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared.<br /> (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)
- Subjects :
- Humans
Female
Male
Adult
Burnout, Professional psychology
United Kingdom
SARS-CoV-2
Intensive Care Units, Pediatric
Compassion Fatigue psychology
Attitude of Health Personnel
Pandemics
COVID-19 psychology
COVID-19 epidemiology
Qualitative Research
Allied Health Personnel psychology
Critical Care psychology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2044-6055
- Volume :
- 14
- Issue :
- 5
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- BMJ open
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 38806418
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2024-084926