Nurses' experiences regarding working in the psychiatric wards and its physical outcomes

Abstract

Introduction: The nurses have a significant role in the treatment and care of the patients with mental and psychiatric disorders. They encounter complications and various phenomena of the psychiatric settings such as physical strain. It is essential to have a deep understanding on nurses' attitudes, perceptions, emotions and beliefs on physical results in the psychiatric ward. This study was conducted to access nurses' experiences regarding physical outcomes of working in psychiatric settings as an important step in improving psychiatric nursing practice in the psychiatric wards.

Methods: This was a qualitative study with phenomenology method. Participants of this research were selected through proposal sampling. They were nurses who were employed in psychiatric wards of 4 hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. The hospitals included Farabi, Al-Zahra, Noor and Shahid Modarres hospitals. The participants aged 25-50 years (mean age = 35 years). About 35.2 percent were male (N=6) and 64.7 percent were female (N=11). Data were gathered in spring in 2005 by in-depth interviews. Every interview was recorded in a tape. Each interview lasted 20 to 90 minutes (mean time of interview = 49 minutes). Data analysis was done by Colaizzi method.

Results: Study results were summarized in 2 core concepts of physical strain and workload and 4 subconcepts of physical injury, fatigue, environmental management and care provision. Inadequate experience and knowledge in the psychiatric team caused inevitable physical strain.

Conclusion: Having an insight towards nurses' experiences reveals nurses' needs and can help them to have a better picture of themselves. Thus, this was an important step in improving psychiatric nursing practice. Having a deep understanding on nurses' experiences about physical outcomes of psychiatric wards, has a significant and fundamental influence on quality of care given to the patients with psychiatric and mental disorders. It helps not only nurses, also all members of the psychiatric team to decrease physical strain. This study hoped to help all people participating in providing care for the patients with mental and psychiatric disorders, inviting them to improve practice and to evaluate this process. Improvement of professional competence is fulfilled through decreasing the physical strain in the psychiatric wards