Nurse burnout has been found to cause negative consequences among the nurses that include lowered quality of care, job dissatisfaction, and increased risk of negative outcome among patients. For example, previous investigations show that there is a strong correlation between nurse burnout and poor health care such as medication errors, patient falls, patient adverse events, and infections associated with healthcare (Alexander et al., 2015). According to Dall'Ora, Griffiths & Ball (2015), there is a close association between nurse burnout and job satisfaction as well intention to leave. Nurses burn out lead to not only job dissatisfaction but also quality as well as the safety of the care. 12-hour shifts are mostly used in many countries. However, research has shown that “Nurses who worked shifts of ≥12 hours were more likely to report burnout and intention to leave the job when compared to their peers working ≤ eighth shifts.” (p.1).
The increasing awareness about the negative impacts of nurse burnout has heightened interest in research aimed at preventing it. Although studies have shown that yoga is an effective strategy for improving mental as well as physical health outcomes, its efficacy has not been used for nurses. Investigations carried out by Alexander et al. (2015) confirmed that yoga is an effective strategy that can be used to for health promotion among nurses and thus help in preventing burnout. The researchers pointed out that in addition to policies that promote positive changes in the workplace, health systems also need to provide health resources that help nurses cope with burnout in their occupational responsibilities. Although studies have shown that nurse burnout can be prevented at the individual level, other studies suggest that it can be prevented by adopting certain leadership styles. Laschinger and Fida (2014) contend that a combination of interpersonal and organisational resources can be effectively used to prevent nurse burnout. Their research revealed that authentic leadership, as well as psychological capital, are effective strategies for preventing workplace burnout among the nurses. To them, psychological capital such as improved interpersonal relations and tactics employed by authentic leaders are effective for minimising associated job stressors.
Reference
Alexander, G. K., Rollins, K., Walker, D., Wong, L., & Pennings, J. (2015). Yoga for self-care and burnout prevention among nurses. Workplace health & safety, 63(10), 462-470.
Dall'Ora, C., Griffiths, P., & Ball, J. (2015). 12-hour shifts: nurse burnout, job satisfaction & intention to leave. Evidence Brief, (3), 1-2.
Laschinger, H. K. S., & Fida, R. (2014). New nurses’ burnout and workplace wellbeing: The influence of authentic leadership and psychological capital. Burnout Research, 1(1), 19-28.
