Managing occupational stress and fear of HIV/AIDS among nurses and midwives in Namibia
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Date
2005
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Abstract
Occupational stress and fear of contagion are common among nurses/midwives dealing with HIV/AIDS patients, and the psycho-social impact become more acute when death occurs, because the loss of a young patient, the suffering and self identification with the patient cause acute sadness and grief. Therefore a need rises to address the problem of occupational stress and fear among nurses and midwives caring for victims of HIV/AIDS. The Government of the Republic of Namibia has taken a policy decision as part of the Medium Term Plan III (MTP III), that all sectors should develop and implement sectoral workplace HIV/AIDS programmes geared toward addressing challenges facing their human resources. The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MOHSS) has launched its national HIV/AIDS sectoral committee to fulfill its sectoral obligation
In the absence of well researched data on what kind of support staff members require at institutional level, the researcher undertook a study to explore how occupational stress and fear among nurses/midwives providing care to HIV/AIDS patients in the two Windhoek State Hospitals can be managed. The objectives of the study are: to explore strategies used by nurses/midwives to cope with occupational stress and fear, to identify ways in which occupational stress and fear can be alleviated and managed, to identify the nature of support nurses/midwives expect from their employer in dealing with stress and fear associated with care giving role regarding HIV/AIDS and lastly, to recommend possible strategies to assist in the management of occupational stress and fear
The results of interviews and a focus group indicate that nurses/midwives are experiencing sadness, fear, stress, anger or happiness after nursing HIV/AIDS patients. These emotions however are influenced by various factors such as the condition of the patient, workload, knowledge deficiency, shortage of staff and high risk working conditions
The study found that there is no sectoral HIV/AIDS policy or guidelines addressing the impact of HIV/AIDS on health care providers. This resulted in each nurse/midwife having to cope in his or her own way. The study further found that the two hospitals have no staff support programmes in place due to the absence of a policy framework
The researcher suggests that future research should investigate the impact of HIV/AIDS on the workforce of the Ministry of Health and Social Services and the service delivery. Secondly, how home based care can be integrated in the training of health workers and the general delivery of nursing care to HIV/AIDS patients must be investigated. Thirdly, how the community feels about establishing hospice centres for terminally ill HIV/AIDS patients should also be explored.
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Nurses, Job stress, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Fear and Phobias, Pressure