Effects of psychological intervention on empathy fatigue in nurses: A meta-analysis

ObjectiveThe purpose of this meta-analysis is to systematically assess the effects of psychological intervention on empathy fatigue among nursing staff.MethodFive electronic databases are searched separately from their establishment to April 8th, 2022. The research team independently performs paper selection, quality assessment, data extraction and analysis for all included studies. PRISMA guidelines are used to report this meta-analysis.ResultsA total of seven randomized controlled trials (RCTs) covering 513 nursing staff are included. The meta-analysis results show that the empathy fatigue score (SMD = −0.22, 95% CI: −0.42~−0.02, P = 0.03) and burnout (SMD = −0.37, 95% CI: −0.56~−0.19, P < 0.001) are lower than the control group. The empathy satisfaction score of the psychological intervention group is higher than that of the control group (SMD = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.27–0.63, P < 0.001). The differences are statistically significant (P < 0.05). Subgroup analysis finds significant heterogeneity in the impact of different departments on psychological intervention at ≥6 weeks (I2 = 71%, P = 0.01) and