BACKGROUND: Family carers of people with dementia are at risk of psychological morbidity, and it is suggested that this may also be the case in paid carers as caring for people with dementia can be emotionally and physically demanding. Care homes have historically had difficulty recruiting and retaining staff, and job stress has previously been linked to high turnover amongst long-term care staff. We performed a systematic review of studies of the prevalence of psychological stress in staff caring for people with dementia in residential long-term care settings. METHODS: We conducted a comprehensive literature search of MEDLINE, PsychINFO and Web of Science databases up to May 2009, supplemented by a search of the references of all relevant articles. Search terms encompassed nursing staff, residential care and psychological distress. Validity of studies was graded by two authors independently using a standardized checklist. RESULTS: We identified 601 studies of which five met our inclusion criteria. Two studies reported on prevalence rates of staff distress and found 37% and 5% levels of being "at risk" from burnout, four studies reported mean stress scores and all were low. CONCLUSIONS: All studies were either small or used instruments with unsatisfactory psychometric properties and so our conclusions are limited by the lack of good quality evidence. The preliminary evidence suggests that most staff who remain working in homes do not have a high prevalence of psychological stress or level of symptoms.
BACKGROUND: Family carers of people with dementia are at risk of psychological morbidity, and it is suggested that this may also be the case in paid carers as caring for people with dementia can be emotionally and physically demanding. Care homes have historically had difficulty recruiting and retaining staff, and job stress has previously been linked to high turnover amongst long-term care staff. We performed a systematic review of studies of the prevalence of psychological stress in staff caring for people with dementia in residential long-term care settings. METHODS: We conducted a comprehensive literature search of MEDLINE, PsychINFO and Web of Science databases up to May 2009, supplemented by a search of the references of all relevant articles. Search terms encompassed nursing staff, residential care and psychological distress. Validity of studies was graded by two authors independently using a standardized checklist. RESULTS: We identified 601 studies of which five met our inclusion criteria. Two studies reported on prevalence rates of staff distress and found 37% and 5% levels of being "at risk" from burnout, four studies reported mean stress scores and all were low. CONCLUSIONS: All studies were either small or used instruments with unsatisfactory psychometric properties and so our conclusions are limited by the lack of good quality evidence. The preliminary evidence suggests that most staff who remain working in homes do not have a high prevalence of psychological stress or level of symptoms.
Authors: Alessandro Morandi; Elena Lucchi; Renato Turco; Sara Morghen; Fabio Guerini; Rossana Santi; Simona Gentile; David Meagher; Philippe Voyer; Donna M Fick; Eva M Schmitt; Sharon K Inouye; Marco Trabucchi; Giuseppe Bellelli Journal: J Psychosom Res Date: 2015-08-09 Impact factor: 3.006
Authors: Stefanie Auer; Elmar Graessel; Carmen Viereckl; Ursula Kienberger; Edith Span; Katharina Luttenberger Journal: Health Qual Life Outcomes Date: 2015-02-07 Impact factor: 3.186
Authors: Kate-Ellen J Elliott; Christine M Stirling; Angela J Martin; Andrew L Robinson; Jennifer L Scott Journal: Health Expect Date: 2015-10-16 Impact factor: 3.377