The situation of nurses in hospitals during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: an online survey

The situation of nurses in hospitals during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: an online survey Abstract. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has an impact on stress and wellbeing of nurses. Anxiety of infection, lack of protective equipment and insufficient expertise in care of these patients were described as reasons of burnout. Aim: The influence of work-related sense of coherence as well as perceived organizational support on the burnout level and the intention to leave the job will be explored. Method: In December 2020 and January 2021, staff of 81 hospitals in Hessia, Germany were invited to participate in an online survey using the BAT (Burnout-Assessment-Tool), work-SoC (work-related - Sence of Coherence), the POS-s (perceived organizational Support - short version) and items based on a literature review. Results: Of 595 nurses, 47.6% showed a moderate or high burnout level, 20.7% want to leave the job after the pandemic. The higher the work-SoC (beta = -0.467; p < 0.001) and the higher the POS-s (beta = -0.178; p < 0.001), the lower the burnout level. Trainings in the organization were mentioned by 24.7% of the nurses as a positive factor. They missed support in mindfulness and resilience training, in child care and health-related topics. 55.1% did not agree that the employer does everything to support them. Conclusions: Regardless of the pandemic, salutogenic leadership is required, which deals with "moral injuries" of employees as a result of implicit rationing and foster health-related support.