The study examines the relationship between stress, sleep and mental health in nurses. Stress is a multifaceted condition with biological, cognitive, and emotional aspects. The bodily response to stress depends on the variety of stress and the psychological responses of an individual. One of these responses will be the lack of sleep and reduced productivity by nurses.
Statement of the Problem
Even though the quality is affected by numerous factors, one of the most significant psychological factors that affect it is stress. Stress can result in short term insomnia in the mild cases, while it can facilitate the onset of chronic insomnia in the worst cases; this in turn affects the ability of nurses to provide effective care. Therefore, nurse should take steps to manage stress to enable them to sleep better.
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Hypothesis
Extreme stress results in long term and short term dysfunction in the different human systems, and triggers the defense mechanisms of the central nervous systems.
Procedures
A comprehensive literature review was done on the online database of the University of Western States. The database included various reputable journals like PubMed, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and allied and Complementary Medicine Database. The selection of these databases was made as they contain a broad selection of studies, which match the quality that was needed. Also, the search was limited to only peer-reviewed journals.
Statistical Significance
The outcomes from the studies investigated in this literature review are deemed to represent the whole population with only a 5% error allowance. The findings, therefore, are deemed 95% correct and generalization is practical.. The generality of the outcomes got from the studies will be deemed to represent the whole population of nurses.
Limitations
Due to the limitation of studies focusing on the investigation of the current topic, the search had to be broadened to cover the implications of stress. Consequently, some of the reviewed studies did not particularly address stress in nurses. The lack of an evidenced-based, standardized intervention for nurses also means that the study cannot determine whether the absence or presence of effectiveness comes up from the intervention or other complex variables. Such limitations justify the need for the research, especially considering the topic’s importance and scarcity of studies.
Literature Review
Sleep is a critical part of human homeostasis. Sleep-related disorders are closely tied to critical social, psychological, and medical disturbances in nurses ( Alvarez et al, 2019). .Since the stress symptoms of the human body play a key role in adjusting to a constantly changing and difficult environment, it is a critical question whether the loss of sleep affects these systems. The human body gathers defensive techniques in an effort to adapt and preserve homeostasis. If these defenses fail to work, insomnia may present itself. Short term insomnia is facilitated by a shift of routine such as stress.
Even though sleep can be affected by numerous factors such as noise, temperature, bed comfort, caffeine, light, diet, and exercise, these are all physical influences that human beings can control ( Alvarez et al, 2019) . On this note, stress or anxiety is a significant condition that results in the loss of sleep. It is interesting to think that even if our bodies need sleep and are ready for sleep, something as simple as our thoughts can reduce one’s ability to sleep. Even more outstanding is that even if we have everything to help us sleep under control, we may still have sleep problems.
Stress can activate the cortisol hormone which give energy to a person and make it difficult to fall asleep at night. Examples of this would be a student who is just about to go to bed and they remember they have an essay due the next day or a person who has a big interview; in both situations, the individuals are nervous about the next day, thus, will lack sleep. Despite wide studies investigating the relationship between stress and sleep, a broader understanding about the effect of stress on the onset of insomnia is needed.
Design: Operational and Conceptual Definitions of Variables and Instruments
The study will apply the generic qualitative inquiry technique. The purpose of a generic qualitative inquiry is to understand a process, or perspective in a study. The generic qualitative inquiry is used as in this case when the researcher wants to understand a research study from the perspectives of others. In particular, the study will seek to evaluate the effect of stress on nurses from past studies.
Data Gathering and Analysis
The researcher focuses on a meta-analysis of past study to come up with an inference. It is this analysis, which will form the bedrock of the study. If the appropriate results are to be gained, then the Meta analysis should cover a wide range of studies. The evidence of an effectively implemented research methodology will as such lie in the quality of meta-analysis performed by the researcher. The analysis will be impartial and objective to gain a deeper understanding of the intervention and its effect.
Research Timeline
The research will be done within eight weeks and its timeline is reflected in the table below.
| Tasks | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 |
| Introduction | ||||||||
| Hypothesis Development and Literature Review | ||||||||
| Research Methodology | ||||||||
| Interviews, Transcriptions, Summary of Findings, and Analysis | ||||||||
| Conclusions |
References
Alvarez, H. A. O., Provencio-Vasquez, E., Slavich, G. M., Laurent, J. G. C., Browning, M., McKee-Lopez, G., ... & Spengler, J. D. (2019). Stress and Health in Nursing Students: The Nurse Engagement and Wellness Study. Nursing research , 68 (6), 453-463.
