Validation of the SF-8 Scale in Argentinian Palliative Care Professionals: Assessing Perceived Health with Competitive Models and its Relationship with Professional Quality of Life

Abstract Background This research presents a short version of the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) scale, one of the most frequently used questionnaires in the arena of applied healthcare investigation. It measures burnout (BO), compassion fatigue (CF), and compassion satisfaction (CS). Methods A 9-item version of the ProQOL was developed. In Study 1, this short version, which used items from version IV of the ProQOL, was administered to 817 palliative care professionals from Spain, Argentina, and Brazil. In Study 2, the same nine items, but this time from version V of the ProQOL, were administered to 296 Spanish palliative care professionals. Results Study 1: The Short ProQOL showed an adequate internal structure, and invariance across the countries studied (χ2(106) = 185.620 (p < 0.001), CFI = .929, RMSEA = 0.058 [0.044, 0.072], SRMR = 0.081). Argentinians showed higher levels of BO (mean difference = 0.172, p = 0.042, Cohen’s d = 0.168), whereas Brazilians showed higher levels of CF (Mean difference = 0.384, p = 0.002, Cohen’s d = 0.352). Study 2: the Short ProQOL again showed adequate internal structure and reliability (χ2(24) = 134.504 (p < 0.001); CFI = 0.953; RMSEA = 0.126 [0.106, 0.147]; SRMR = 0.063), and was related to coping with death, self-compassion, and self-care. Conclusions The Short ProQOL could help facilitate the application of harmonizing measurements and its use for cross-cultural comparisons and occupational health monitoring was satisfactory.

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Perceived health, perceived social support and professional quality of life in hospital emergency nurses

International Emergency Nursing ◽

10.1016/j.ienj.2021.101079 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 59 ◽

pp. 101079

Author(s):

María Dolores Ruiz-Fernández ◽

Juan Diego Ramos-Pichardo ◽

Olivia Ibañez-Masero ◽

Máximo Juan Sánchez-Ruiz ◽

Antonia Fernández-Leyva ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Social Support ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Perceived Health ◽

Professional Quality Of Life ◽

Hospital Emergency ◽

Emergency Nurses ◽

Professional Quality

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Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health of Palliative Care Professionals and Services: A Mixed-Methods Survey Study

American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine® ◽

10.1177/10499091211057043 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 104990912110570

Author(s):

Wallace Chi Ho Chan ◽

Raymond Kam Wing Woo ◽

Denis Ka-Shaw Kwok ◽

Clare Tsz Kiu Yu ◽

Lawrence Man-Hon Chiu

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Mixed Methods ◽

Professional Quality Of Life ◽

Care Services ◽

Professional Quality ◽

Palliative Care Services ◽

The Impact

Introduction This study aimed to examine the mental health of palliative care professionals in Hong Kong during the COVID-19 pandemic, the relationship of mental health with socio-demographic factors, and the impact of the pandemic on palliative care services. Methods A total of 142 palliative care professionals in Hong Kong participated in an online survey. The questionnaire includes measurements on depression, anxiety, perceived stress, post-traumatic stress, professional quality of life, items that measure the effect of COVID-19 on palliative care services, and one open-ended question for describing how the services were affected. Descriptive and multivariate regression analyses were conducted. Quantitative and qualitative data about the impact of COVID-19 on palliative care services were analyzed and triangulated using a mixed-methods approach. Results Up to 82%, 43%, and 42% of the participants felt moderately to highly stressed, anxious, and depressed, respectively, during the pandemic. Younger participants tended to have poorer mental health and professional quality of life. Around 82% felt stressed when communicating with patients and family members under the no-visiting policy during the pandemic. More than three-quarters of participants showed lack of confidence in the anti-epidemic policy of the government. Qualitative findings identified 3 themes affecting the provision of palliative care: 1. the tightening of restrictions on visitors; 2. the limited provision of services; and 3. staff deployment. Conclusions Appropriate responses are required to give extra support to palliative care professionals during the pandemic and facilitate their coping with the impact of COVID-19 on the provision of palliative care.

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Palliative Care Professionals’ Inner Lives: Cross-Cultural Application of the Awareness Model of Self-Care

Healthcare ◽

10.3390/healthcare9010081 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 81

Author(s):

Amparo Oliver ◽

Laura Galiana ◽

Gustavo de Simone ◽

José M. Tomás ◽

Fernanda Arena ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Self Care ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Professional Quality Of Life ◽

Good Reliability ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Professional Quality

Compassionate professional qualities traditionally have not received the most attention in either critical or end of life care. Constant exposure to death, time pressure and workload, inadequate coping with personal emotions, grieving, and depression urge the development of an inner curricula of competences to promote professional quality of life and compassionate care. The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the universality of these problems and the need to equip ourselves with rigorously validated measurement and monitoring approaches that allow for unbiased comparisons. The main objective of this study was to offer evidence on the generalizability of the awareness model of self-care across three care systems under particular idiosyncrasy. Regarding the sample, 817 palliative care professionals from Spain, Argentina, and Brazil participated in this cross-sectional study using a multigroup structural equation modeling strategy. The measures showed good reliability in the three countries. When testing the multigroup model against the configural and constrained models, the assumptions were fulfilled, and only two relationships of the model revealed differences among contexts. The hypotheses posited by the awareness model of self-care were supported and a similar predictive power on the professional quality of life dimensions was found. Self-care, awareness, and coping with death were competences that remained outstanding no matter the country, resulting in optimism about the possibility of acting with more integrative approaches and campaigns by international policy-makers with the consensus of world healthcare organizations.

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The Personal Wellbeing Index in Spanish Palliative Care Professionals: A Cross-Sectional Study of Wellbeing

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2021.672792 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Sergio Pérez-Belmonte ◽

Laura Galiana ◽

Irene Fernández ◽

Gabriel Vidal-Blanco ◽

Noemí Sansó

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Personal Wellbeing Index ◽

Mean Square ◽

Professional Quality Of Life ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Professional Quality ◽

Wellbeing Index ◽

Personal Wellbeing

Health professionals are especially exposed to stress, with consequences on professionals’ health and wellbeing. However, palliative care professionals’ wellbeing has been the subject of very little research. The aim of this work is to study the Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) in a sample of Spanish palliative care professionals, as well as to study their levels of wellbeing and the relationships of wellbeing with variables such as gender, age, marital status, profession, and professional quality of life. A cross-sectional survey of Spanish palliative care professionals was conducted. The Spanish version of the PWI and the Short version of the Professional Quality of Life Scale were used. Here, 296 palliative care professionals attending patients at the end of life participated in the study. They showed medium to high levels of wellbeing. The PWI showed an adequate internal structure [χ2(20) = 116.130 (p < 0.001)]; Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.970; standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.041; root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.140 (0.116, 0.166)] and excellent estimates of reliability [α = 0.879 and Composite Reliability Index (CRI) = 0.923]. Wellbeing was higher for married compared to single and showed no relation with age, gender, and profession. Additionally, a structural equation model was estimated, in which a positive relation was found between wellbeing and compassion satisfaction and a negative one with burnout. The PWI is adequate to measure personal wellbeing in Spanish palliative care professionals.

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Association between level of exposure to death and dying and professional quality of life among palliative care workers

Palliative & Supportive Care ◽

10.1017/s1478951517000487 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 16 (4) ◽

pp. 442-451 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Tali Samson ◽

Pesach Shvartzman

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Interaction Effect ◽

Healthcare Workers ◽

Response Rate ◽

Death And Dying ◽

Professional Quality Of Life ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Professional Quality

ABSTRACTBackground:Exposure to the death and dying of others is an anxiety-provoking condition that can contribute to psychological stress. However, the results of empirical studies that evaluated work-related outcomes among physicians and nurses with repeated exposure to dying patients are not consistent.Objective:Our aim was to evaluate whether a high level of exposure to death and dying (LED) can increase the risk for poor professional quality of life (ProQoL) in most healthcare workers, but it can also improve ProQoL in a subset of healthcare workers with specific characteristics.Method:We employed a cross-sectional survey designed to better understand the role of LED as a predictor of ProQoL among healthcare workers.Setting and Participants:Comparison of physicians and nurses with high LED (home-based palliative care units) with a matched group of physicians and nurses with low LED (primary care units) and evaluation of possible interaction effects among LED, death anxiety (DA), and engagement as predictors of ProQoL.Results:The final sample included 110 questionnaires from the high-LED group (response rate = 39%) and 131 from the low-LED (response rate = 24%) group. Workers with high LED reported an increased level of compassion satisfaction (CS) and low to moderate levels of burnout (BU) and secondary traumatic stress (STS), with no significant differences with respect to other healthcare providers. Although levels of CS, STS, and BU did not differ between groups, a univariate MANOVA revealed that the interaction effect of LED × Engagement reduced levels of CS and that the interaction effect of LED × DA increased STS among workers with high LED.Significance of results:LED was significantly correlated with ProQoL among healthcare workers with high LED due to the reported interaction effect. These findings imply, for the first time, that there is a possible correlation between engagement and the risk for poor ProQoL among workers with high LED. Further research is essential to gain a better understanding of this issue.

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