Background: Palliative care in Germany is divided into general (GPC) and specialised palliative care (SPC). Although palliative care will become more important in the care sector in future, there is a large knowledge gab, especially with regard to GPC. The aim of this study was to identify and compare the burdens, resources, health and wellbeing of nurses working in GPC and SPC. Such information will be helpful for developing prevention programs in order to reduce burdens and to strengthen resources of nurses. Methods: In 2017, a nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted. In total, 437 nurses in GPC and 1316 nurses in SPC completed a questionnaire containing parts of standardised instruments, which included parts of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), the Resilience Scale (RS-13) Questionnaire, a single question about back pain from the health survey conducted by the Robert Koch Institute as well as self-developed questions. The differences in the variables between GPC and SPC nurses were compared. Results: SPC nurses reported higher emotional demands as well as higher burdens due to nursing care and the care of relatives while GPC nurses stated higher quantitative demands, i.e. higher workload. SPC nurses more often reported organisational and social resources that were helpful in dealing with the demands of their work. Regarding health, GPC nurses stated a poorer health status and reported chronic back pain as well as a major depressive disorder more frequently than SPC nurses. Furthermore, GPC nurses reported a higher intention to leave the profession compared to SPC nurses. Conclusions: The findings of the present study indicate that SPC could be reviewed as the best practice example for nursing care in Germany. The results may be used for developing target group specific prevention programs for improving health and wellbeing of nurses taking the differences between GPC and SPC into account. Finally, interventional and longitudinal studies should be conducted in future to determine causality in the relationship of burdens, resources, health and wellbeing.

Background: The aim of this study was to analyse the buffering effect of individual, social and organisational resources on health and intention to leave the profession in the context of burden due to quantitative job demands. Methods: In 2017, a cross-sectional survey was carried out anonymously among nurses in palliative care in Germany. One thousand three hundred sixteen nurses responded to the questionnaire (response rate 38.7%), which contained, amongst others, questions from the German version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ). Moderator analyses were conducted to investigate the buffering effect of different resources on health (‘self-rated health’ and ‘burnout’) and ‘intention to leave’ in the context of quantitative demands. Results: ‘Self-rated health’ was significantly buffered by the resources ‘recognition through salary’ (p = 0.001) and ‘good working team’ (p = 0.004). Additionally, buffering effects of the resources ‘workplace commitment’ and ‘good working team’ on ‘burnout’ (p = 0.001 and p = 0.006, respectively) as well as of the resources ‘degree of freedom’, ‘meeting relatives after death of patients’, ‘recognition from supervisor’ and ‘possibilities for development’ on ‘intention to leave’ (p = 0.014, p = 0.012, p = 0.007 and p = 0.036, respectively) were observed. Conclusions: The results of our study can be used to develop and implement job (re) design interventions with the goal of reducing the risk of burnout and enhancing job satisfaction among nurses in palliative care. This includes for example adequate payment, communication training and team activities or team events to strengthen the team as well as the implementation of some rituals (such as meeting relatives after the death of patients). As our study was exploratory, the results should be confirmed in further studies.

(1) Background: The aim of this qualitative study was to examine pandemic-related changes in nursing work in nursing homes, the resulting work-related stresses and external as well as internal alleviating measures. (2) Methods: We conducted 10 interviews from March to June 2021 with nurses from eight facilities. Data were analysed according to qualitative content analysis. (3) Results: Nurses faced increased workloads due to regulations and guidelines paired with staffing shortages. Work became more difficult due to personal protective equipment (PPE), conflict with residents’ relatives and, in the case of outbreaks, excess death and suffering. Nurse-to-resident care work became more emotionally demanding, with residents more distressed due to the lockdown, while families and social workers were not allowed into the facility. Residents with dementia posed an additional challenge, as they did not remember hygiene and distancing rules. Internal and external measures were not sufficient to alleviate the situation. However, some measures, such as training programmes or existing palliative care concepts, were considered helpful. (4) Conclusions: Facing other possible upcoming pandemics, ways to improve facility administration to prepare for future pandemics are highly needed, such as regular training programmes to prepare for possible lockdown scenarios, PPE use or potential hygiene measures.

Zusammenfassung. Hintergrund: Die Mehrheit sterbenskranker Menschen wird in der allgemeinen Palliativversorgung (APV) durch ambulante Pflegedienste (AP), durch Alten- / Pflegeheime (APH) und durch ... Working conditions of nurses in general palliative care in Germany – A cross-sectional survey Background: Most terminally ill people are treated within general palliative care including o...

Background/Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic placed an immense burden on nursing home staff, significantly increasing their workload. How the impact of these challenges on job satisfaction is mitigated by personal and social resources, along with organisational support measures initiated by nursing homes, is investigated in this study. Methods: In 2021, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among nursing home staff in Rhineland-Palatinate (n = 373). The questionnaire contained parts of standardised instruments (parts of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ), Brief Resilience Scale) and self-developed questions related to support measures such as training, psychological support and work organisation changes. The association of these support measures, as well as personal and social resources (e.g., resilience, social support, sense of community), with job satisfaction was explored. Descriptive, bivariate and regression analyses were conducted. Results: While various support measures were offered to the nursing home staff, significant gaps remained. Training on hygiene and COVID-19 care was beneficial but not universally available. Similarly, psychological, pastoral and palliative support was lacking for a large portion of nursing home staff. Surprisingly, in the regression analysis, frequent information updates from supervisors were found to be negatively correlated with job satisfaction (p = 0.002). However, some personal and social resources (resilience (p = 0.002), social support (p = 0.001), sense of community at work (p ≤ 0.001), commitment to the workplace (p = 0.019), recognition by management (p ≤ 0.001)), and various support measures (training programmes (p = 0.005), changes in work organisation (p = 0.008), technical measures (p = 0.025)) were positively correlated with job satisfaction. Conclusions: This study highlights that despite the implementation of various support measures for nursing home staff during the COVID-19 pandemic, significant gaps remained. Notably, a substantial portion of staff members lacked access to crucial support services such as psychological, pastoral and palliative care. Furthermore, healthcare facility managers should prioritise the following support measures, especially during crises: comprehensive training, including resilience training; flexible working arrangements; and recognition for nursing staff. Ultimately, healthcare organisations should aim to create a supportive work environment that fosters a sense of community and belonging among their nursing workforce.