Abstract
Nursing is generally perceived as a demanding profession. Along with the increased demand and progress in the nursing profession, stress among emergency department nurses has also increased. As such, emergency department nurses deal with a variety of stressful situations and circumstances that induce the presence of occupational stress. These encounters could make them feel more stressed than nurses in other departments. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the lived experiences of emergency department nurses with occupational stress and their coping mechanisms at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Soweto. This study followed an explorative, phenomenological qualitative inquiry on ED nurses’ lived experiences with occupational stress and their coping mechanisms. 15 nurses were purposively sampled to participate in the study. The study used semi-structured interviews to collect data. Data for this study was analysed using the Interpretive Phenomenological Approach. The trustworthiness of the data was maintained following the criteria outlined by Lincoln and Guba (1985). The findings comprised of three main themes: (1) Occupational stressors, (2) consequences of stress, and (3) stress management. Under occupational stress, the sub-themes that emerged relate to shortage of staff, heavy workload, shortage of resources, overcrowding in the ED, violence, both physical and verbal abuse, to name a few. In regard to the consequences of stress on ED nurses, this study found that occupational stress impacts nurses in three dimensions namely, physical health, mental health, and their family relationships. Additionally, the concomitant coping mechanisms employed by ED nurses were both adaptive and maladaptive. The findings of this study can be used by hospital management to improve services and help emergency department nurses adopt effective coping strategies and availing psychological support services to decrease occupational stress among emergency department nurses. Future research that explores each of the themes found in this study could offer a more comprehensive understanding of nurses’ lived experiences with occupational stress in the emergency department
Keywords: Occupational stress, emergency department, nursing profession.