Hemodialysis and its Effects on Nurses
Hemodialysis is a treatment for kidney failure that involves utilizing a machine to filter blood outside of a patient's body. As soon as renal failure is detected, patients must seek emergency medical attention. In the event that a person's kidneys fail, the blood must be purified using the hemodialysis procedure. There are various side effects for people undergoing this therapy process, which includes several organ failures. As a result, people with kidney failure must be cared for effectively. This implies that the nurses have to be very competent in their practice so as to provide sufficient dialysis, ensure adequate nutrition, maintain vascular access, correct hormonal deficiencies, minimize hospitalization, and to prolong life while improving its quality (Aasen, Kvangarsnes & Heggen, 2012).
The Impact of Excessive Workload on Nurses
Due to the increased number of patients seeking hemodialysis, nurses have experienced excessive workload which has resulted in the burnout of the nursing profession and stress among nurses. The persistence of stress may lead to nurses leaving their profession and leaving a shortage in the field. This research is aimed at exploring suitable intervention measures that nurses can adopt to deal with patients attending hospitals for hemodialysis and treatment of sepsis.
The Role of Counseling in Stress Management
As an intervention measure, counseling has been identified as part of it so as to assist the nurses cope with the stress of increasing number of patients in need of hemodialysis and treatment of sepsis (Henry, 2014). Counseling involves offering professional guidance and assistance in solving psychological challenges that nurses experience with their increased workload. In the nursing profession, counseling is an exceptionally noteworthy approach in the management of stress. This is where the counselor and the nurses set aside time in order to explore the difficulties that the nurses are experiencing in their profession and try to identify the potential solution so as to make their work much easier (Horigan, Rocchiccioli & Trimm, 2012). This is because counseling will help them develop self-confidence, self-control, understanding, and the ability to endure and work more efficiently.
Comparison of Research Studies
For so many years now, many studies have been conducted with the aim of answering research questions. In the year 2012, a research study was conducted with the aim of investigating the prominent causes and effects of job stress and coping mechanism among nurses in public health services (Circenis & Millere, 2012). The key finding to this study indicated that the major contributor of job stress among nurses is the job itself because they have a higher number of patients that need to be cared for in the hemodialysis process by the limited number of nurses in the field. Another research was conducted in the year 2014 that was aimed at exploring the impact of hemodialysis on the social life of people with chronic end stage renal failure. The key finding to this study indicated that the chronic kidney failure has long-term effects on the patients and their families. This is because it affects their ability to work, and their roles in the family, social life, relationship and health due to the social factors such as age, education, socioeconomic profile and gender. Another study was conducted in the year 2014 that was aimed at evaluating novel hospital-based palliative care service for patients with advanced organ failure in urban South Africa aimed to determine whether the service reduces admissions and increases home death rates compared with the same fixed time period of standard hospital care. The key findings to this study indicated that the outpatient hospital-based services decreased the hospital admissions and improved the rate of home deaths and offer a realistic and cost-effective model for such settings. This is mainly to improve the working conditions of the nurses so as to make their jobs more admirable and achievable.
Comparison of Sample Populations
The three research studies were conducted on three different samples. In the first study conducted in the year 2012, it involved issuing of questionnaires and a total of 159 questionnaires were returned. Also, of the 25 selected respondents for the interview session, a total of 21 respondents took part in the interview survey. The second study conducted in the year 2014 involved analyzing of the results of earlier studies and the feedback derived from the studies. Lastly, was the study conducted in the year 2014 that involved studying of the 102 death patients from the hospital.
Comparison of the Limitations of the Study
Every study has its own limitations because it may not meet all the requirements of the research. The first study conducted in the year 2012 did not consider the possibility of coping mechanism of nurses in a very stressful situation not working out more effectively. The second study was limited only to the effects on the social life on the patients only without considering the fact that this might also affect the nurses caring for dialysis patients. Finally, the third study was only limited to the working conditions of the outpatient-based settings.
Conclusion
From the findings of the study, it is evident that the working conditions of the nurses caring for patients having hemodialysis. Their work must be easier through various means such as offering them coping mechanisms for management of stress at work, and offering patients the services that help in early detection of the kidney failures before it becomes chronic. Therefore, nurses have to be encouraged to do their job better by improving their working conditions and their management of stress.
Recommendations
Due to the existing limitations, there are a number of recommendations that have been put in place so as to improve the future research studies. It is recommended in the first study that the most preferred coping mechanism be identified so as to determine its positive effects (Lu, Barriball, Zhang & While, 2012). In the second study, it is recommended that the effects of offering friendly environment top the patients be examined as well as the effects of social life on the nurses caring for hemodialysis patients. The third study recommended that the growing body of evidence that palliative care can reduce costs at the end of life be examined.
References
Aasen, E. M., Kvangarsnes, M., & Heggen, K. (2012). Nurses’ perceptions of patient participation in hemodialysis treatment. Nursing ethics, 19(3), 419-430.
Circenis, K., & Millere, I. (2012). Stress related work environment factors: Nurses survey results. International Journal of Collaborative Research on Internal Medicine & Public Health, 4(6), 1150-1157.
Henry, B. J. (2014). Nursing burnout interventions: What is being done?. Clinical journal of oncology nursing, 18(2), 211.
Horigan, A., Rocchiccioli, J., & Trimm, D. (2012). Dialysis and fatigue: implications for nurses–a case study analysis. Medsurg nursing: official journal of the Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses, 21(3), 158.
Lu, H., Barriball, K. L., Zhang, X., & While, A. E. (2012). Job satisfaction among hospital nurses revisited: a systematic review. International journal of nursing studies, 49(8), 1017-1038.
