Skip to main content

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Occupational Health and Safety
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1463751
This article is part of the Research Topic Burnout, Wellbeing and Resilience of Healthcare Workers in the Post-COVID World View all 4 articles

Stress in Novice Nurses in New Work Environments: A Systematic Review.

Provisionally accepted
Ángela Narbona-Gálvez Ángela Narbona-Gálvez 1Juan Jesús García-Iglesias Juan Jesús García-Iglesias 2*Diego Ayuso-Murillo Diego Ayuso-Murillo 3Guadalupe Fontán-Vinagre Guadalupe Fontán-Vinagre 4Juan Gómez-Salgado Juan Gómez-Salgado 2,5*Regina Allande Cussó Regina Allande Cussó 6Javier Fagundo-Rivera Javier Fagundo-Rivera 7Israel Macías-Toronjo Israel Macías-Toronjo 1Carlos Ruiz-Frutos Carlos Ruiz-Frutos 2,5
  • 1 School of Doctorate, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain
  • 2 Department of Sociology, Social Work and Public Health, Faculty of Labour Sciences, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain
  • 3 General Nursing Council of Spain, Government of Spain, Madrid, Spain
  • 4 Spanish Institute for Nursing Research, Government of Spain, Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  • 5 Safety and Health Postgraduate Programme, Escuela de Posgrado, Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo, Guayaquil, Ecuador
  • 6 Department of Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Physiotherapy and Podiatry, Sevilla University, Seville, Spain
  • 7 Centro Universitario de Enfermería Cruz Roja, Sevilla University, Seville, Spain

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Inexperienced nursing care can compromise the quality of care and the well-being of patients. The aim of this study was to assess the main sources of stress encountered by nurses and novice nurses in a setting not previously experienced. Methods: A systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA format in Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, and CINAHL electronic databases in March 2024. A total of 395 studies were identified, of which 16 met the inclusion criteria. Selection was made on the basis of topic relevance and methodological quality, assessed using the critical tools of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI). Results: A total of 16 studies were included in this review. Of the 16 selected, 10 were cross-sectional studies, 3 were cohort studies, 2 were qualitative, and 1 was a systematic review. The studies revealed that the main stressors for novice nurses included time management, workload, and interpersonal relationships. The results underline that organisational factors, such as lack of support and high work demands, play a key role in generating stress. Conclusions: Identifying and addressing the key challenges faced by novice nurses, such as workload, adjustment to the environment, professional expectations, and interpersonal relationships, is crucial to sustain their professional engagement and ensure the quality of health care. This understanding is essential for creating efficient policies and practices that enhance the occupational well-being and stability of nurses in the workforce.

    Keywords: Nurses, Occupational stress, Professional burnout, Psychological adaptation, Mental Health, Clinical Competence

    Received: 12 Jul 2024; Accepted: 18 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Narbona-Gálvez, García-Iglesias, Ayuso-Murillo, Fontán-Vinagre, Gómez-Salgado, Allande Cussó, Fagundo-Rivera, Macías-Toronjo and Ruiz-Frutos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Juan Jesús García-Iglesias, Department of Sociology, Social Work and Public Health, Faculty of Labour Sciences, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain
    Juan Gómez-Salgado, Department of Sociology, Social Work and Public Health, Faculty of Labour Sciences, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.