In acute and critical care (ACC) settings, registered nurses (RNs) undertake multifaceted responsibilities, contributing to their susceptibility to workplace stressors. Despite the pivotal role of coping strategies in preserving RNs’ well-being, challenges in cultivating effective mechanisms persist, underscoring the necessity for synthesized evidence to inform supportive interventions. Therefore, in this review, we aim to summarize the international literature on the coping strategies that RNs in ACC use to manage workplace stressors. This was a scoping review adhering to the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology. Search databases included MEDLINE®, Embase®, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Web of Science®, and the Cochrane Library. Inclusion criteria included RNs (participants), coping strategies for work-related stressors (concepts), and global ACC settings (context). Documents prior to 2000 or those focused on various health care professionals/students, without differentiation of results, were excluded. Two reviewers independently screened, extracted, appraised, and analyzed the studies. Out of 7,985 documents located, 168 relevant documents from 2003 to 2023 were included in this review. Among those were studies using intervention-based, quantitative descriptive, qualitative, mixed method, and other methodologic approaches. Ultimately, 3 categories emerged: 1) recognition of stressors, 2) coping strategies, and 3) influences on RNs’ coping strategies. Coping strategies were further categorized into problem-focused, emotion-focused, meaning-focused, and support-seeking strategies, revealing a range of techniques used by RNs. Our findings provided valuable insights into the stressors faced by RNs in acute care settings and the coping mechanisms they employ, underscoring the importance of organizational support and tailored interventions in mitigating workplace stress and promoting the well-being of health care professionals.
Silva et al. (Fri,) studied this question.