Introduction
This article gives an evaluation of the effectiveness of a web-based stress management program, BREATH, with a special focus on nurses. According to the researchers, “Nursing is a notoriously high-stress occupation-emotionally taxing and physically draining, with a high incidence of burnout.” (Hersch et al., 2016) As such, high levels of stress in the nursing profession often result in low retention and high attrition hence the shortage of nurses in both the public and private sectors. Although no measurable valuables are identified in the research topic, the study includes a number of variables, including demographics, levels of job satisfaction, knowledgeability of depression and anxiety, and various stress coping mechanisms. This is undoubtedly an important topic for research considering the nature of the area of focus and the impact the research findings could have on the nursing profession in general.
Background and Literature Review
The researchers begin by reiterating the importance of the nursing profession in the healthcare sector. Background reports in this study indicate that there are more than 4 million registered nurses in the United States, representing the highest percentage of professionals in the healthcare sector (IOM, 2010). The researchers argue that nurses are critical to the healthcare sector hence indispensable. Despite being responsible for the wellbeing of millions of Americans, they experience high- stress levels that make them vulnerable to various health risks, including mental health. As a result, the nurses’ productivity is negatively affected, which ultimately compromises the quality of patients’ care. This assertion is shared by other credible scholars in studies relating to stress in the nursing profession hence making the authors’ claims valid and applicable.
Furthermore, it suffices to state that the review carried out in this article is quite comprehensive as it covers studies from the past 25 years. The literature reveals that stress intervention has an immense effect on stress reduction. Examples of interventions mentioned in the literature include workplace stress management activities, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and relaxation intercessions (Hersch et al., 2016. However, the researchers argue that the aforementioned techniques of stress management are quite demanding compared to web-based programs.
Methodology and Analysis
The purpose of the study was to determine the effectiveness of a web-based stress management tool developed to help nurses cope with job- related stress. The study involved nurses from six hospitals in Virginia and New York City. A randomized control experiment was carried out to meet the purposes of the study, which was to test the effectiveness of web-based stress management programs for the nurses. The dropout rate, as indicated by the authors less than 25 percent. However, tests revealed their insignificance to the outcome of the study. The approach chosen seems suitable to the experimental nature of the study, although there is no mention of its validity or reliability by the authors.
In line with the methodology approach, the researchers opted for questionnaires as the main method of data collection and were issued to participants both before exposure to the wen- based stress management program and after exposure to the program. Informed consent was gained from the participants before participation in the study. I believe that questionnaires as a method of data collection is reliable and were the most suitable tool for this study. However, validity tests have to be conducted to establish reliability (Hayashi, 2019). Processed data were analyzed through a series of multiple regressions and thereafter an ANOVA analysis through SPSS to determine the significance of the imputations.
Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations
The findings of the study indicated that nurses who were exposed to the web-based program exhibited improvements in the perceived stress associated with the profession. Therefore, the researchers strongly recommended the use of the Web-based program (BREATHE) to help nurses effectively cope with occupational stress. I believe that the researchers were exceptional in various aspects of this study, including sampling and the methodology approach selected. However, the researchers failed to use visual presentations such as graphs for easier interpretation. In my opinion, the findings of this study are very important to the practice as the application of web-based stress management techniques could help boost productivity and quality of patient care in the healthcare sector.
References
Hayashi Jr, P., Abib, G., & Hoppen, N. (2019). Validity in qualitative research: A processual approach. The Qualitative Report, 24(1), 98-112.
Hersch, R. K., Cook, R. F., Deitz, D. K., Kaplan, S., Hughes, D., Friesen, M. A., & Vezina, M. (2016). Reducing nurses’ stress: A randomized controlled trial of a web-based stress management program for nurses. Applied nursing research, 32, 18-25.
IOM (Institute of Medicine) (2010). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.