A lack of supplies, including personal protective equipment, put nurses' psychological well-being at risk, according to a study published in the Archives of Psychiatric Nursing.
For the study, researchers from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., analyzed survey responses from 372 registered nurses in Indiana. The survey analyzed various types of trauma nurses experienced and researchers identified lack of resources as a new subset of trauma, The Washington Post reported.
According to the study, insufficient resource trauma is psychological trauma that occurs when nurses lack the knowledge, personnel or supplies needed to do their job. In late May, 66 percent of healthcare workers reported shortages of N95 masks, 42 percent reported glove shortages and 36 percent reported shortages of both protective gowns and face shields in a poll conducted by the Post and Ipsos, a market research company.
Some nurses have opted to quit their jobs rather than do them without sufficient PPE, and nurse retention may be endangered by nurses' psychological trauma, the Post reported.
Read the full Post article here.