Mental Disorder Symptoms Among Nurses in Canada

Background Nurses face regular exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events as part of their occupational responsibilities. Cumulative stress due to repeated exposure to such events is associated with poor mental health and an increased risk of developing clinically significant symptoms...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian journal of nursing research 2021-09, Vol.53 (3), p.264-276
Main Authors: Stelnicki, Andrea M., Carleton, R. Nicholas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Generalized anxiety disorder
Mental depression
Mental disorders
Mental health
Nurses
Nursing
Post traumatic stress disorder
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background Nurses face regular exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events as part of their occupational responsibilities. Cumulative stress due to repeated exposure to such events is associated with poor mental health and an increased risk of developing clinically significant symptoms consistent with some mental disorders. Purpose The current study was designed to estimate rates of mental disorder symptoms among nurses in Canada and identify demographic characteristics that are associated with increased risk for mental disorder symptoms. Method An online survey was conducted with Canadian nurses in both English and French. Participants were recruited largely through the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) member unions, non-CFNU member unions, and social media. The survey assessed current mental disorder symptoms using well-validated screening measures. Results A total of 4267 participants (93.8% women) completed the survey. Almost half of participants screened positive for a mental disorder (i.e., 47.9%). No gender differences emerged. Significant differences in proportions of positive screens based on each measure were found across demographic groups (e.g., age, province of residence, type of nurse). Conclusions The rate of positive screens appears much higher than mental disorder prevalence rates in the general Canadian population, but there were important methodological differences. The current results provide potentially important information to support researchers and healthcare administrators to investigate possible ways to mitigate and manage mental health in nursing workplaces.
ISSN:0844-5621
1705-7051
DOI:10.1177/0844562120961894