Critical Appraisal Essay

Critical Appraisal Essay

 Critical Appraisal Paper

Job stress is a significant issue in the nursing profession that can have detrimental effects on the quality of patient care and the mental and physical health of nurses. This critical appraisal examines two qualitative research studies exploring different approaches to addressing job stress among nurses. The first study, “How do nurses cope with job stress? A study with grounded theory approach,” explores the coping strategies nurses employ to manage job stress. The second study, “Mindfulness for healthcare providers: The role of non-reactivity in reducing stress,” examines the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing stress among healthcare providers. The critical appraisal will evaluate the strengths and limitations of each study, as well as their relevance and implications for nursing practice.

PICOT Question

Among nurses, does implementing comprehensive and individualized approaches to address job stress, compared to no intervention, improve the quality of patient care and nurses’ mental and physical well-being over six months?

P – Population: Nurses

I – Intervention: Implementation of comprehensive and individualized approaches to address job stress

C – Comparison: No intervention

O – Outcome: Improvement in the quality of patient care and the mental and physical well-being of nurses

T – Timeframe: Six months

Background of Studies

Stress and coping mechanisms are important aspects to consider among nurses and healthcare providers. Two articles were analyzed in this regard. The first article presented a qualitative study that investigated nurses’ coping process in managing job stress. Using a grounded theory approach, the study identified four axial concepts and a core variable that constitute the coping process of nurses. The study found that the context-based nature of coping processes in nurses was crucial in lightening the negative effects of coping. This study aimed to explore the coping process of nurses with job stress.

The second article examined the role of mindfulness in reducing stress among healthcare providers. The study aimed to analyze the association between the change in non-reactivity to inner experience after Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and the adjusted changes in perceived stress among healthcare providers. The study’s findings suggested that non-reactivity to inner experience was a key aspect of MBSR that was independently associated with a change in perceived stress in healthcare providers. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing stress among healthcare providers. The research question answered by the first study was about the nurses’ coping process with job stress. The studies are significant for the nursing profession as they offer valuable information to promote the well-being of healthcare providers.

How the Two Articles Support the Nursing Practice Problem

Both articles provide valuable insights into addressing the nursing practice problem of job stress among nurses. The first article highlights the coping strategies nurses employ to manage job stress, which can inform the development of interventions and support systems tailored to the individual needs of nurses. The second article focuses on the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing stress among healthcare providers, which can serve as a potential intervention for nurses experiencing job stress. The findings of both studies support the need for comprehensive and individualized approaches to addressing job stress among nurses, which can ultimately improve the quality of patient care and the mental and physical well-being of healthcare providers, therefore, addressing the PICOT question.

Method of Studies

The first study utilized a qualitative methodology, specifically the grounded theory approach, to understand how nurses cope with job stress in hospital environments. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 15 nurses, three head nurses, and one supervisor. Data analysis involved continuous comparison of data and theoretical sampling until data saturation was achieved. The study aimed to develop an organic production theory of data, generating a better understanding of the coping process with job stress among nurses.

On the other hand, the second study utilized a quantitative methodology to investigate the role of non-reactivity in reducing stress for healthcare providers through mindfulness-based stress reduction programs. The study involved 100 healthy adults who enrolled in an 8-week MBSR course at a large teaching hospital in the Midwest. Standardized questionnaires were used to measure perceived stress scale-10, quality of life, and non-reactivity at baseline and intervention completion. Changes from the baseline were analyzed using Wilcoxon rank sum tests and linear regression models, and Cohen’s D effect sizes were calculated.

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The two studies differ in their methodologies for data collection and analysis. The first study used a qualitative approach with semi-structured interviews and continuous data comparison, providing a detailed understanding of nurses’ coping processes with job stress but with a small sample size that may not represent the larger population. The second study used standardized questionnaires and statistical analysis, offering a standardized and objective measure of changes in stress and non-reactivity but potentially overlooking the complexity of the coping process.

Results of Studies

Two studies were conducted to investigate stress management in healthcare providers. The first study found that nurses use various strategies to cope with job stress, which individual and extrinsic factors can influence. The coping process can lead to stress reduction and occupational hurts. The second study showed that completing an MBSR program significantly reduced perceived stress and improved healthcare providers’ overall quality of life. Non-reactivity and mindfulness of emotions were strongly associated with reduced perceived stress, suggesting that mindfulness practices could effectively reduce stress in healthcare providers. These studies have implications for nursing practice, highlighting the importance of stress management techniques and the potential effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing job stress among nurses.

Ethical Considerations

When conducting research, it is essential to consider ethical considerations to ensure the study is conducted ethically and responsibly. Protecting human subjects is one of the most important ethical considerations researchers need to address. This includes obtaining informed consent, ensuring confidentiality and privacy, and minimizing participant risks (Resnik, 2020). The researchers in both studies took ethical considerations into account by obtaining informed consent, ensuring anonymity, providing debriefing and follow-up sessions, monitoring participant wellbeing, and using data only for research purposes. The researchers adhered to ethical guidelines to ensure the protection and well-being of the participants, which is critical for the credibility and trustworthiness of their research findings.

Conclusion

The critical appraisal examined two qualitative and quantitative research studies on job stress among nurses. The first study explored the coping strategies nurses employ to manage job stress, while the second study investigated the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing stress among healthcare providers. Both studies offer valuable insights into addressing the nursing practice problem of job stress among nurses. The findings of the studies support the need for comprehensive and individualized approaches to addressing job stress among nurses to improve the quality of patient care and the mental and physical well-being of nurses. The studies have implications for nursing practice, highlighting the importance of stress management techniques and the potential effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing job stress among nurses. The ethical considerations were considered in both studies, including obtaining informed consent, ensuring confidentiality and privacy, and minimizing participant risks.

References

Benzo, R. P., Anderson, P. M., Bronars, C., & Clark, M. (2018). Mindfulness for healthcare providers: The role of non-reactivity in reducing stress. EXPLORE, 14(6), 453–456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2018.03.008

Eslami Akbar, R., Elahi, N., Mohammadi, E., & Fallahi Khoshknab, M. (2017). How do nurses cope with job stress? A study with grounded theory approach. Journal of Caring Sciences, 6(3), 199–211. https://doi.org/10.15171/jcs.2017.020

Resnik, D. (2020, December 23). What is ethics in research & why is it important? National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis/index.cfm

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Research Critique Guidelines – Part I
Use this document to organize your essay. Successful completion of this assignment requires that you provide a rationale, include examples, and reference content from the studies in your responses.
Qualitative Studies
Introduction
1. Introduce your nursing practice problem and discuss the purpose of your paper.
2. State your PICOT question.
Background of Studies
1. Summary of studies including problem, significance to nursing, purpose, objective, and research questions.
How Do These Two Articles Support the Nursing Practice Problem You Chose?
1. Discuss how these two articles will be used to answer your PICOT question.
2. Describe how the interventions and comparison groups in the articles compare to those identified in your PICOT question.
Method of Studies
1. State the methods of the two articles you are comparing and describe how they are different.
2. State one benefit and one limitation of each method you have identified.
Results of Studies
1. Summarize the key findings of each study in one or two comprehensive paragraphs.
2. What are the implications of the two studies in nursing practice?
Ethical Considerations
1. Discuss two ethical considerations in conducting research.
2. Describe how the researchers in the two articles you choose took these ethical considerations into account while performing their research.
Conclusion
1. Your conclusion should summarize the main points in the essay, including a varied restatement of the thesis.