Predicting Who’ll Show Up: Research on Nurses’ Intentions to Work during a Public Health Crisis

By Sylvia Foley, AJN senior editor

Figure 1. Percentage of respondents indicating willingness to work during a flu pandemic according to self-reported perception of flu threat

During disasters and emergency situations, the public expects health care workers to show up and do their jobs. But this isn’t a given—there are always some who are either unable or unwilling to do so. So far, most of the research in this area has used convenience samples, hypothetical situations, or untested survey instruments, and very little has focused solely on nurses.

To learn more, Sharon Dezzani Martin and colleagues decided to explore further. This month’s original research CE, “Predictors of Nurses’ Intentions to Work During the 2009 Influenza A (H1N1) Pandemic,” reports on their findings. Here’s the abstract, which offers a brief overview.

Objective: This study examined potential predictors of nurses’ intentions to work during the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic.
Methods: A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of 1,200 nurses chosen from all RNs and LPNs registered with the Maine State Board of Nursing during the second wave of the flu pandemic.
Results: Of the 735 […]

2017-07-27T14:49:21-04:00December 16th, 2013|nursing perspective, nursing research|0 Comments
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Post-Sandy Emotional Self-Care for Nurses and Others

Hurricane Sandy, from International Space Station at 16:55:32 GMT on Oct. 29, 2012 / NASA

By Donna Sabella, MEd, MSN, PhD, RN, mental health nurse, AJN contributing editor, and coordinator of the monthly Mental Health Matters column

With the recent devastation caused by Sandy in the mid-Atlantic and New England areas we need to be mindful that the harm done in such events goes beyond property and the physical domains. Many exposed to Sandy’s wrath may be suffering from varying degrees of stress and psychological trauma. It is important to remember that, along with taking care of our physical needs, in the process of getting back to normal we also need to be mindful of our emotional needs and reach out for help as necessary.

As health care providers we nurses pride ourselves on being able to handle anything that comes our way as we strive to give patients the best care possible, but it is important for us to be aware of our own emotional needs during times of crisis and disaster. Sandy is considered a disaster—for those affected by the storm, either directly or indirectly, the experience can lead to thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that are outside our usual range, and which may indicate it’s time to seek help. Below, I offer some information that provides tips on how to take psychological care of ourselves after Sandy :

2016-11-21T13:08:52-05:00November 19th, 2012|nursing perspective|0 Comments
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One of Many Hurricane Sandy Nursing Stories


Margot Condon is an NYU Langone Medical Center neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse whose story “went viral” this past week. She was photographed in her efforts to preserve the life of an eight-hour-old infant, as part of a team that evacuated the child down nine flights of stairs. Click the image above to go to the CNN interview with Condon. Such extreme life-saving tasks may not be in a nurse’s job description, but they go to the heart of the nursing profession and its ethos of caring and commitment.

This is just one story from Hurricane Sandy. We know there are many others we will be hearing about in the coming weeks. Here’s a short description from the CNN page with the video:

In the photo, she’s holding a small baby…and pumping air into its lungs outside the hospital during the emergency evacuation. Backup generators failed during Superstorm Sandy and the medical staff was tasked with safely transferring everyone to other facilities.

It took a team of at least six people to get the fragile patient safely down nine flights of stairs in the dark. They had to coordinate their movements, each with a different job. The doctor was there, the security guard with an oxygen tank, the father and others assisting. The baby’s mother was still hospitalized during the dramatic mission.

Condon, a nurse for 36 years, says she remained focused on each step they needed to take, but has never seen […]

2016-11-21T13:09:00-05:00November 5th, 2012|Nursing|1 Comment
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Views expressed on the blog are solely those of the authors or persons quoted. They do not necessarily reflect AJN’s views or those of Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
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