Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Date Created

12-2023

Abstract

Nurse practitioners (NPs) are a significant part of the U.S. healthcare system providing high quality, safe, consistent care often in low access and rural settings. Nurse practitioners are increasing in demand due to a growing physician shortage and a changing patient demographic of aging patients and patients with increasing complex, chronic illnesses. Nurse practitioners experience chronic work stress from layered demands of their work and role. This challenges their resilience and, if not appropriately managed, could lead to negative consequences for patient outcomes, the well-being of the NP, and overall healthcare system. Applying interventions that could effectively and efficiently foster NP resilience is needed. Promotion of positive work-life experiences and meaningful work is necessary when the resilience of the NP provider is vulnerable or threatened. Literature regarding resilience in the NP population is young but growing. Resilience is multifactorial. Evidence-based interventions to foster resilience show promise but limited high-quality research supported individual interventions. Translating this early evidence using combined strategies that are accessible, simple, peer-driven, and peer-supported might result in preservation of NP resilience. The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice scholarly project was to develop and validate a combined strategy guide to promote and preserve resilience in nurse practitioners. Using an expert panel of seven NP clinicians, this combined strategy guide was reviewed, validated, and found to be useful for NPs experiencing chronic work stress and captured factors affecting NP resilience. Future implementation of the guide is directed at mitigating work stress and burnout to sustain engagement and meaning in NP work. Ultimately, patient clinical outcomes are affected by access to healthy, engaged healthcare providers who continue to deliver safe and high-quality care.

Keywords

Nurse practitioner; resilience; interventions; work-satisfaction; work-stress

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