title: Resident care needs and work stressors in special care units versus non-specialized long-term care units.
abstract: Differences in how elderly residents' care needs affect staff's experiences of work stressors between special care units (SCUs) for dementia and psychiatric residents and non-SCUs were investigated. The data were drawn from 390 staff members in 38 long-term care SCUs, and 587 staff in 53 non-SCUs in Finland. Residents' care needs were based on the Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) system measured by the Minimum Data Set 2.0. Work stressors (time-pressure and role-conflicts) were assessed with a staff survey questionnaire. Multiple-group regression analysis showed that residents' dependency in activities of daily living (ADL) was related to increased work stressors only in SCUs. A high proportion of behavioral problems was related to fewer work stressors for SCU staff, but more for non-SCU staff. Work stressors may be reduced by specializing, so that residents with similar care needs are placed together and care is focused.
authors.affiliation: National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pekkarinen
authors.forename: Timo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sinervo
authors.forename: Marko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Elovainio
authors.forename: Anja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noro
authors.forename: Harriet
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Finne-Soveri
authors.forename: Esko
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leskinen
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003704:Dementia / Q000451:nursing*; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D006707:Homes for the Aged / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000451:nursing*; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000145:classification / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires