Hong Kong Med J 2006;12(Suppl 1):S35-8
Sources, coping mechanisms, and consequences of burnout among nurses in Hong Kong public hospitals: implications for human resource management practices
S Akhtar, JSY Lee, J Lai
Department of Management, City University of Hong Kong
1. Professional recognition and job demands appear to be core issues among nursing professionals. We suggest that the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong (HA) in general and nursing managers in particular focus on career development, performance feedback and performance management.
2. Supervisory support needs to be improved considerably. Unless supervisors show sensitivity to the constraints that the nurses face, the emotional health of nurses will deteriorate.
3. When young and less-experienced nurses have work-related problems, there should be a mentor available who can listen and give advice and direction.
4. In high-pressure working environments (eg A&E, Medicine, etc), the HA may consider establishing ‘stress-free’ areas for the nurses to retreat to during their breaks, such as rest areas close to workstations, but far enough away to be free from interruption, to enable the nurse to ‘switch off’.
2. Supervisory support needs to be improved considerably. Unless supervisors show sensitivity to the constraints that the nurses face, the emotional health of nurses will deteriorate.
3. When young and less-experienced nurses have work-related problems, there should be a mentor available who can listen and give advice and direction.
4. In high-pressure working environments (eg A&E, Medicine, etc), the HA may consider establishing ‘stress-free’ areas for the nurses to retreat to during their breaks, such as rest areas close to workstations, but far enough away to be free from interruption, to enable the nurse to ‘switch off’.