Background
Nurses make up the largest segment of the healthcare workforce and have the closest and most sustained proximity to patients. There is a shortage of approximately 2 million nurses in India. Such a paucity of nurses exerts tremendous pressure on their mental health and subsequently on the health care delivery system of the country. This is due to the additional work that a limited number of nurses have to shoulder. This study is a cross-sectional survey that explores the impact of character strengths gratitude and humility on death anxiety of experienced (>5yrs) and novice (<5yrs) Indian nurses.
Aims
Firstly, to see the prevalence of death anxiety among nurses in India. Secondly, to see the impact of gratitude and humility on death anxiety and well-being among working nurses.
Method
The sample consisted of 700 nurses [350 experienced (>5 yr) and 350 novice (<5yrs) nurses]. The tools used were Death anxiety scale developed by Templer, gratitude questionnaire 6 developed by McCullough, and general humility scale by Davis et.al., 2011.
Results
Death anxiety of subjects with less experience was reported to be higher as compared to more experienced nurses (p < 0.01 level). Secondly, it was found that death anxiety of experienced nurses is influenced by higher gratitude and humility level whereas, in novice nurses, lower levels of humility and gratitude were associated with a higher level of death anxiety. There was a significant negative correlation between death anxiety and the well-being of nurses.
Conclusion
Gratitude and humility as character strengths are helpful in buffering the negative effects of death anxiety and enhancing the well-being of nurses. Nurses’ mental health through the examination of death anxiety from a positive psychological perspective deserves investigation. It is concluded that policies about mental health education among nurses should be formulated to help them effectively deal with death anxiety. Thus, including them in maintaining their own mental health.