New Article: Iecovich & Avivi, Agism and Burnout among Nurses in Long-Term Care Facilities

Iecovich, Esther, and Michal Avivi. “Agism and Burnout among Nurses in Long-Term Care Facilities in Israel.” Aging & Mental Health (early view; online first).

 

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2015.1102198

 

Abstract

Objectives: The extent to which agism and professional qualifications are associated with nurses’ burnout in long-term care facilities for older adults has been barely examined. This study is aimed to examine the extent to which agism, professional education, and geriatric training explain work burnout.

Method: The study included a convenience sample of 154 nurses working in 17 long-term care facilities in the Tel Aviv area in Israel. To examine agism, Kogan’s Attitudes toward Old People Scale was used, and to probe burnout, the Maslach Burnout Inventory was used.

Results: Overall burnout was significantly explained by agism, nurses’ professional education, length of working as a nurse, and type of facility ownership. When examining each dimension of burnout, agism was a significant predictor of depersonalization and personal achievement.

Conclusion: Agism plays a role in overall burnout. Therefore, training programs that can combat agism can reduce burnout of nurses in long-term care facilities.

 

 

New Article: Kerzman et al, Attitudes toward Expanding Nurses’ Authority

Kerzman, Hana, Dina Van Dijk, Limor Eizenberg, Rut Khaikin, Shoshi Phridman, Maya Siman-Tov, and Shoshi Goldberg. “Attitudes toward Expanding Nurses’ Authority.” Israel Journal of Health Policy Research (early view; online first).

 

URL: http://dx.doi.org/110.1186/s13584-015-0005-z

 

Abstract

Background
In recent years, an increasing number of care procedures previously under the physician’s authority have been placed in the hands of registered nurses. The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of nurses towards expanding nurses’ authority and the relationships between these attitudes and job satisfaction facets, professional characteristics, and demographics.

Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted between 2010 and 2011 in three major medical centers in Israel. Participants included 833 nurses working in 89 departments. Attitudes toward the expansion of nurses’ authority were assessed by self-report questionnaire, as well as job satisfaction facets including perception of professional autonomy, nurse-physician working relations, workload and burnout, perceptions of quality of care, and nursing staff satisfaction at work.

Results
Nurses reported positive attitudes toward the expansion of nurses’ authority and moderate attitudes for interpretation of diagnostic tests in selected situations. The results of multivariate regression analyses demonstrate that the nurses’ satisfaction from professional autonomy and work relations were the most influential factors in explaining their attitudes toward the expansion of nurses’ authority. In addition, professionally young nurses tend to be more positive regarding changes in nurses’ authority.

Conclusion
In the Israeli reality of a nurse’s shortage, we are witnessing professional transitions toward expansion of the scope of nurses’ accountability and decision–making authority. The current research contributes to our understanding of attitudes toward the expansion of nurses’ authority among the nursing staffs. The findings indicate the necessity of redefining the scope of nursing practice within the current professional context.