Other Titles
Rapid Presentation Round
Abstract
Background/objective: An estimated one-tenth of nurses worldwide are said to be suffering from severe burnout1. The high prevalence of burnout is concerning as a Canadian survey determined that nurses with high levels of burnout were 17 times more likely to screen positive for posttraumatic stress disorder, 43 times more likely to screen positive for major depressive disorder, 25 times more likely to screen positive for generalized anxiety disorder, and 23 times more likely to screen positive for panic disorder than participants who reported no burnout2. A common precipitating factor associated with nurses’ burnout and mental health is the nursing practice environment (i.e., leadership, support, staffing, resources)3-6. Thus, the objectives of this cross-sectional study were to 1) Examine the prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders, 2) Describe the nursing practice environment, and 3) Analyze associations between burnout and/or mental health disorders and factors within the nursing practice environment.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a sample of nurses in Northwestern Ontario. Registered Nurses, Registered Practical Nurses, and Nurse Practitioners that were currently working within the Northwestern Ontario region were eligible to participate. Consenting participants completed an online survey through Qualtrics. Ethics approval was obtained from Lakehead University.
Results: We are still recruiting participants. Once recruitment closes, we will share the prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders. Further, descriptive statistics of the nursing practice environment will be done. Lastly, we will analyze the associations between the nursing practice environment and burnout and mental health disorders.
Conclusions: This study will contribute to the generation of new knowledge regarding the current prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders of nurses within Northwestern Ontario. Further, identification of the salient factors associated with burnout and mental health disorders among nurses is important as the nursing practice environment is amenable to change. Thus, there is the potential for the development of policies and/or interventions to target modifiable variables in an upstream manner to mitigate the development of mental health disorders and burnout. Not only will this produce a healthier, more sustainable nursing workforce, but impacts at the patient and organizational levels are also possible.
Notes
References:
1. Woo, T., Ho, R., Tang, A., & Tam, W. (2019). Global prevalence of burnout symptoms among nurses: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 123, 9-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2019.12.015
2. Stelnicki, A., & Carleton, R.N. (2021). Mental disorder symptoms among nurses in Canada. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research, 53(3), 264-276. https://doi.org/10.1177/0844562120961894
3. Lake, E.T., Sanders, J., Duan, R., Riman, K., Schoenauer, K., & Chen, Y. (2019). A meta analysis of the associations between the nurse work environment in hospitals and 4 sets of outcomes. Med Care, 57(5), 353-361. https://doi.org/10.1097%2FMLR.0000000000001109
4. Buckley, L., Berta, W., Cleverley, K., Medeiros, C., & Widger, K. (2020). What is known about pediatric nurse burnout: A scoping review. Human Resources for Health, 18(9), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-020-0451-8
5. Dall’Ora, C., Ball, J., Reinius, M., & Griffiths, P. (2020). Burnout in nursing: A theoretical review. Human Resources for Health, 18(41), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-020-00469-9
6. Ge, M-W., Hu, F-H., Jia, Y-J., Tang, W., Zhang, W-Q., & Chen, H-L. (2023). Global prevalence of nursing burnout syndrome and temporal trends for the last 10 years: A meta-analysis of 94 studies covering over 30 countries. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 32(17-18). https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.16708
Sigma Membership
Non-member
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Cross-Sectional
Research Approach
Mixed/Multi Method Research
Keywords:
Workforce, Stress and Coping
Recommended Citation
Miller, Ainsley; Kristman, Vicki L.; and Sandhu, Mannila, "Nurses' Practice Environments, Burnout, and Mental Health in Northwestern Ontario" (2025). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 139.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2025/presentations_2025/139
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Conference Year
2025
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Nurses' Practice Environments, Burnout, and Mental Health in Northwestern Ontario
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Background/objective: An estimated one-tenth of nurses worldwide are said to be suffering from severe burnout1. The high prevalence of burnout is concerning as a Canadian survey determined that nurses with high levels of burnout were 17 times more likely to screen positive for posttraumatic stress disorder, 43 times more likely to screen positive for major depressive disorder, 25 times more likely to screen positive for generalized anxiety disorder, and 23 times more likely to screen positive for panic disorder than participants who reported no burnout2. A common precipitating factor associated with nurses’ burnout and mental health is the nursing practice environment (i.e., leadership, support, staffing, resources)3-6. Thus, the objectives of this cross-sectional study were to 1) Examine the prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders, 2) Describe the nursing practice environment, and 3) Analyze associations between burnout and/or mental health disorders and factors within the nursing practice environment.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a sample of nurses in Northwestern Ontario. Registered Nurses, Registered Practical Nurses, and Nurse Practitioners that were currently working within the Northwestern Ontario region were eligible to participate. Consenting participants completed an online survey through Qualtrics. Ethics approval was obtained from Lakehead University.
Results: We are still recruiting participants. Once recruitment closes, we will share the prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders. Further, descriptive statistics of the nursing practice environment will be done. Lastly, we will analyze the associations between the nursing practice environment and burnout and mental health disorders.
Conclusions: This study will contribute to the generation of new knowledge regarding the current prevalence of burnout and mental health disorders of nurses within Northwestern Ontario. Further, identification of the salient factors associated with burnout and mental health disorders among nurses is important as the nursing practice environment is amenable to change. Thus, there is the potential for the development of policies and/or interventions to target modifiable variables in an upstream manner to mitigate the development of mental health disorders and burnout. Not only will this produce a healthier, more sustainable nursing workforce, but impacts at the patient and organizational levels are also possible.
Description
This presentation is focused on nurses’ burnout, mental health disorders, and practice environments. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among nurses working in Northwestern Ontario to evaluate prevalence and salient factors associated with burnout and mental health disorders. This study is part of a longitudinal cohort study that will continue to follow-up with nurses every six months to evaluate changes in their burnout levels, mental health disorders, and nursing practice environment.