Caring for the Caregivers: Results of an Extended, Five-component Stress-reduction Intervention for Hospital Staff

ABSTRACT

The health-related consequences of stress in hospital workers and associated costs of absenteeism and high turnover have increased the need for programs targeting stress in this population. “Caring for the Caregivers,” a multimodal approach to stress-reduction designed to address the multidimensional nature of stress in hospital staff, integrates five components: cognitive, somatic, dynamic, emotive and hands-on, in a flexible eight-month format. Significant improvements were demonstrated for 97 participants compared to 67 controls in pre–post scores for the Maslach Burnout Inventory, Job-Related Tension Index, Perceived Stress Scale, Productivity Scale, General Health Questionnaire, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, and Visual Analogue Scales of 12 stress-associated symptoms. Together with significant reduction in upper respiratory infections and family doctor visits, these results suggest that providing hospital staff with multiple techniques addressing commonly encountered work stressors impacts positively on health and well-being and significantly reduces stress and burnout in this population.

KEYWORDS:

• Burnout
• Caregivers
• health
• hospital staff
• integrated stress reduction
• Israel nurses
• quality of life
• self-care
• stress
• stress management
• stress symptoms
• relaxation
• training
• wellbeing
• workplace stress

Acknowledgments

The authors are most grateful to HMO staff who participated in the study and the co-operation of the Division of Nursing and the Workers Committee at HMO. We also thank Louise Gartner of Dallas, Texas an early pioneer of stress reduction and workers health for the inspiration she provided, Gigi Gartner for continuing help, Dr. Ellie Henkind-Katz who believed in the importance of this study from its inception, Profs Ora Paltiel, Ellen Moss and Moshe Almagor for helpful advice during the preparation of this manuscript and the late Prof Ayala Malach Pines for her invaluable early advice.

Funding

The authors gratefully appreciate support for this program by The Louise Gartner Philanthropic Fund (USA), The Henkind-Katz Foundation, (USA) The Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust (UK) and the late Louis L. Borick (USA). The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors. The funders had no role in any stage of the design and conduct of the study, collection, management, analysis and interpretation of data and preparation, review or approval of the manuscript.