Wellness Intervention for Nurses Post Traumatic Growth and Selfcare (WINGS)

WINGS Project: Wellness Interventions for Nurses' Post Traumatic Growth and Self Care : A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Study

Nurses working in home and hospice care settings find their roles emotionally challenging and are at high risk for trauma, strain and fatigue. Such sufferings were high among nurses during the Covid-19 pandemic. Our study tested the effectiveness of a self-reflexive wellness intervention to promote resilience, posttraumatic growth and subjective wellbeing among nurses. Participants were divided in three different groups. One group did not intervention whereas the other two were assigned writing 2 blogs each week and attending a wellness workshop. Findings showed that writing weekly blogs helped nurses to be self reflexive about their feelings, generated self-awareness and improved their wellbeing.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Compassion Fatigue; Trauma, Psychological; Moral Injury
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Blog writing

Detailed Description

Recent pandemic crisis has further exposed nurses to added vulnerabilities, trauma, and sufferings including increased burnouts, suicide rates, psychological and existential crisis. Nurses working in nursing homes, long term care and hospice settings require increased support to embrace reappraise their trauma and suffering in order to gain personal strength and growth. Our study aimed to examine the effectiveness of 'SOPHIE' (Self-exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential expressions) as a self-reflective wellness intervention to promote resilience, posttraumatic growth, and subjective wellbeing among nurses working in the palliative care settings.

The specific aims of the study included: 1) To determine the extent of self-perceived trauma, resilience, and subjective wellbeing among nurses working in palliative care settings (i.e., nursing homes, hospice, and long-term care facilities) 2) To identify associated factors contributing to trauma, resilience, and subjective wellbeing of nurses. 3) To evaluate the effectiveness of a self-reflective wellness intervention tool in promoting fostering resilience, posttraumatic growth, and subjective wellbeing of nurses. The study was guided by NPT (Nurse Psychological Trauma) and SOHIE framework. Using a quasi-experimental Pre and Posttest design, we enrolled 160 participants in the study. Participants in the intervention group were asked to write 2 blogs every week online using Qualtrics and attend a 4 hour wellness workshop. Pre- and post-intervention surveys were sent online at the baseline, four weeks, and six weeks following intervention.

Pre and post-test surveys were analyzed using the SPSS, a quantitative statistical tool and included self-reported outcomes measures of post traumatic growth, resilience and subjective wellbeing between the control and intervention groups at baseline, 4 weeks and 6 weeks of the study. Demographic data was also analyzed. The participant characteristics include participant's age, gender, level of education, position, training. whereas research outcome variables include post traumatic growth, resilience, and subjective wellbeing. Inferential statistics was used to test the hypothesis under the study. Statistical significance kept at p<0.05 (two-sided) level. Content analysis was done for the descriptive data in the survey including blogs and feedback regarding the intervention. Weekly blogs received were analyzed using thematic analysis approach.

Findings showed significant differences in subjective wellbeing of nurses post intervention. Nearly all participants found blog writing as a supportive and therapeutic intervention that helped them to reflect on their experiences of anxiety, trauma and distress.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 160
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Indiana
    • West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, 47907
      • Purdue University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Individuals who are actively practicing as registered nurses in palliative care settings (i.e., nursing homes, hospices, and long-term care settings); 2) individuals who can read and speak English, and 3) individuals who are age 18 years or above.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Those who are not registered nurses and are not working in palliative care setting.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Control group; This group only filled pre and post surveys at baseline, 4 and 6 weeks
Other: IG 1-Blog writing; This group were asked to write 2blogs a week for four weeks based on SOPHIE framework	Behavioral: Blog writing; Participants were asked to write 2blogs online for four weeks and attend a 4hours wellness workshop; Other Names: wellness workshop
Other: IG2-Blog writing and workshop; This group was asked to write 2bolgs a week for four weeks and then attend a 4hour wellness workshop	Behavioral: Blog writing; Participants were asked to write 2blogs online for four weeks and attend a 4hours wellness workshop; Other Names: wellness workshop

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Resilience	Resilience is defined as ability to adapt. it was measured using Brief resilience scale	at baseline, 4 and 6 weeks
Subjective wellbeing	Measured using Subjective Wellbeing Inventory (SUBI) scale	at baseline, 4 and 6 weeks
Post traumatic growth	measured using Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) Scale	at baseline, 4 and 6 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Purdue University
• Collaborators: University of East London; Kennesaw State University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Nasreen Lalani, PhD, Purdue University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): November 15, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 20, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): November 30, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 4, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 4, 2024
• First Posted (Estimated): November 5, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): November 5, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 4, 2024
• Last Verified: November 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: palliative care; trauma; nurses; resilience; post traumatic growth; subjective wellbeing; self reflexivity; existential wellbeing; blog writing
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Occupational Stress; Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Mental Disorders; Behavioral Symptoms; Stress, Psychological; Stress Disorders, Traumatic; Fatigue; Mental Fatigue; Compassion Fatigue; Psychological Trauma; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2021-1156

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No