Aim: To measure the prevalence of compassion fatigue among Chinese clinical nurses and to examine the effects of resilience and self-efficacy on compassion fatigue.
Design: A cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted in accordance with the STROBE guidelines.
Methods: Participants were recruited from three tertiary hospitals in central China from October 3 to December 15, 2019, using convenience sampling. Clinical nurses (n = 992) from different nursing departments completed the General Information Questionnaire, Professional Quality of Life Scale, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and General Perceived Self-Efficacy Scale. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson or Spearman's correlation analyses, and multiple linear regression models were used.
Results: Nurses experienced moderate levels of compassion fatigue (burnout and secondary traumatic stress). Resilience and self-efficacy were significantly negatively correlated with burnout but not with secondary traumatic stress. Linear regression analysis showed that resilience, self-efficacy, exercise, and physical conditions were the main predictors of burnout. Only physical conditions and marital status significantly predicted secondary traumatic stress.
Conclusion: Nurses are vulnerable to compassion fatigue in China. Resilience and self-efficacy significantly negatively predicted nurses' compassion fatigue. Physical conditions, healthy lifestyles, and social support are also important factors for compassion fatigue.
Impact: Our findings can be used to generate targeted intervention and coping strategies for nurses to improve their resilience and self-efficacy to alleviate compassion fatigue.
Keywords: burnout; compassion fatigue; healthy lifestyle; nurses; nursing; resilience; self-efficacy.
© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.