According to a study published in the American Journal of Nursing , people who are dedicated to nursing experience more suicidal ideas than other workers , and they also do not usually share these thoughts or seek professional help.
These conclusions are derived from a national survey on well-being that was answered by more than 7,000 nurses, with questions asked to detect factors of work stress such as burnout or depression. More than 400 people claimed to have experienced suicidal ideas during the year prior to the questionnaire, a figure that represents about 5.5% of those surveyed and almost 1% higher than the average for all workers (4.3% ).
In addition, people who admitted having suicidal thoughts were also less likely than others to seek professional help to respond to their emotional problems. More than a third of the nurses had at least one burnout symptom and 40% tested positive for depression symptoms.
And all this … before the pandemic
The most striking thing is that the survey was carried out in 2018, before health professionals faced the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, so it is to be expected, according to the authors, that the situation has worsened. The researchers say their findings indicate that the situation needs urgent attention , and systems and practice-based interventions need to be developed and implemented to address exhaustion and suicidal thoughts.
“If the findings of our study are serious enough, we recognize that the impact of the current pandemic has dramatically worsened the situation,” says Liselotte Dyrbye, Mayo Clinic internist and lead author. “The need for system-level interventions to improve the working life of nurses and other members of the healthcare team is longer than ever. “
