title: Emotional effort and perceived support in renal nursing: a comparative interview study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Social support is an important moderator of poor well-being outcomes for nurses engaged in emotional labour with patients; however, the most effective support for renal nurses is not well understood compared with other specialties.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To identify patterns and themes in how renal nurses and two other specialties engage with patients' emotional expressions, express their own emotion and access and provide support for emotional expenditure.
  
  
  METHODS
  Renal, emergency and palliative care nurses from Perth, Western Australia, were interviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Renal nurses engage in significant amounts of emotional labour with patients, and identify co-workers as the most important source of support due to their availability and a sense of shared experience. However, comparative analysis showed that renal nurses do not recognise their emotional expenditure as readily and have less certainty of co-worker support.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Because their high levels of emotional engagement with patients are mostly positive, renal nurses are less prepared than other nurses to manage difficult emotional situations. As co-worker support is highly valued, organisations should train renal nurses specifically to support one another.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bain
authors.forename: Pia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Broderick
authors.forename: Max
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sully
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001293:Attitude to Death; D016529:Emergency Nursing; D004644:Emotions; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000451:nursing* / Q000523:psychology*; D024802:Nurse's Role / Q000523:psychology*; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000523:psychology; D036301:Qualitative Research; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support; D014904:Western Australia
keywords: Job stress; Nurses; Patients; Renal