Work-Related Health Burdens of Nurses in Germany: A Qualitative Interview Study in Different Care Settings

Abstract

Background: The growing need for nursing care is offset by a shortage of nurses, who are exposed to high physical and psychological demands in their daily work and have above-average absences that vary between different care settings. Based on the data on sick days, the question arises: What are the subjective work-related health burdens of nurses in acute care hospitals, inpatient care facilities, and outpatient care services? Methods: Sixteen semi-structured interviews were conducted in different care settings between May and September 2021. Questions about the professional career, everyday working life and personal health, violence in the workplace, and organizational framework conditions were asked. Results: The experiences of the nurses highlighted that health-related burdens have varying manifestations in different care settings. This was reflected in three main categories: health, everyday working life, and experiences of violence. In particular, the different structural framework conditions that trigger stress and the occurrence of violence are important from the perspective of the nurses. Conclusions: The results of this exploratory study can serve as a baseline for obtaining further setting-specific quantitative data that can contribute to the development, implementation, and evaluation of target group-specific health promotion programs.

Keywords: health burdens; nurses; qualitative research; setting-specific approach; work-related; workplace violence.