2021 Volume 14 Issue 1 Pages 24-31
Aims : This study aimed to clarify changes in nurses’ stress and mood states over the course of 1 year during which they provided a form of complementary and alternative therapy (CAM), from the physical side, for patients with mental disorders. The findings could then offer suggestions for supporting nurses who incorporate such therapy into their care.
Methods : Nurses who consented to participate in the study measured their physiological (salivary amylase) and psychological (Profile of Mood States 2nd Edition score ; POMS2-short) conditions before and after providing CAM for their patients. Measurements were taken when the nurses first included CAM in their care and then at 1-month, 6-month, and 1-year intervals during which they provided it. The Ethical Review Board of Osaka University Hospital approved this study.
Results : The participants comprised 10 nurses who worked in five types of wards at four facilities. Massage with essential oils (aroma massage) was the therapy provided at the measurement points. The nurses’ average salivary amylase before and after providing the therapy decreased at the first provision and at 1 month, but increased at the 6-month and 1-year intervals. The increase at 1 year showed a significant difference. The average of nurses’ negative mood states decreased at all measurement intervals. There were significant decreases in the Confusion-Bewilderment and Tension-Anxiety scores at the first provision and at the 1-month measurement point and a significant decrease in the Total Mood Disturbance and Fatigue-Inertia scores at the first provision and at the 1-month and 1-year measurement points (p<0.05).
Discussion : The changes in salivary amylase at the 1-year measurement point suggest that providing aroma massages for patients served as a source of stress for the participating nurses. In contrast, the changes in Profile of Mood States 2nd Edition scores suggest that providing the massages was effective for counteracting nurses’ negative mood states. A control group needs to be established to further elucidate those effects.
