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If Schools Are Closed, Who Will Watch Our Kids? Family Caregiving and Other Sources of Role Conflict among Nurses during Large-Scale Outbreaks

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Tracey L. O'Sullivan ,
Carol Amaratunga ,
Karen P. Phillips ,
Wayne Corneil ,
Eileen O'Connor ,
Louise Lemyre  and
Darcie Dow
Tracey L. O'Sullivan*
Affiliation:
1Bachelor of Health Sciences Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada 2Elisabeth Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Carol Amaratunga
Affiliation:
3Justice Institute of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada 4Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Karen P. Phillips
Affiliation:
1Bachelor of Health Sciences Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada 3Justice Institute of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada
Wayne Corneil
Affiliation:
3Justice Institute of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada 5GAP Santé, Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Eileen O'Connor
Affiliation:
3Justice Institute of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada 6School of Human Kinetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Louise Lemyre
Affiliation:
5GAP Santé, Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada 7School of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Darcie Dow
Affiliation:
3Justice Institute of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada
*
Assistant ProfessorBachelor of Health Sciences ProgramFaculty of Health SciencesUniversity of Ottawa43 Templeton St. (214)Ottawa, OntarioK1N 6N5 Canada E-mail: tosulliv@uottawa.ca
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Abstract

Objectives:

The global impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) brought attention to the role of healthcare professionals as “first receivers” during infectious disease outbreaks, a collateral aspect to their role as responders. This article records and reports concerns expressed by Canadian emergency and critical care nurses in terms of organizational and social supports required during infectious disease outbreaks. The nature of work-family and family-work conflict perceived and experienced by nurses during infectious disease outbreaks, as well as the supports needed to enable them to balance their social roles during this type of heightened stress, are explored.

Methods:

Five focus groups consisting of 100 nurses were conducted using a Structured Interview Matrix facilitation technique.

Results:

Four emergent themes included: (1) substantial personal/professional dilemmas; (2) assistance with child, elder, and/or pet care; (3) adequate resources and vaccinations to protect families; and (4) appropriate mechanisms to enable two-way communication between employees and their families under conditions of quarantine or long work hours.

Conclusions:

Social and organizational supports are critical to help buffer the effects of stress for nurses and assist them in managing difficult role conflicts during infectious disease outbreaks. These supports are necessary to improve response capacity for bio-disasters.

Keywords

caregivingdisaster managementemergency preparednesshealthcare professionalsinfluenzanursingorganizational supportspandemicsevere acute respiratory syndromestressstructured interview matrixwork-family conflict
Type
Original Research
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , August 2009 , pp. 321 - 325
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2009

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