Background: The role of a Flight Nurse is specialised; they must have both education and experience to fulfil the requirements of the role. Mastering these skills takes time, thus long-term retention is essential. When nurses experience their work as more fulfilling, they are more inclined to remain within a role for an extended period. One of the ways to determine the lived experience of nurses is to measure their Professional Quality of Life. This is the first study to look at the Professional Quality of Life of Flight Nurses who work in public sector Aeromedical Retrieval Services in New Zealand.
Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the Professional Quality of Life of Flight Nurses working in the public sector in New Zealand.
Design: A survey based cross-sectional design was employed, using the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) V Health survey tool.
Methods: Online survey data was collected from a convenience sample of 169 Flight Nurses working in public sector Aeromedical Retrieval services in New Zealand.
Results: Of the 88 respondents, all reported either high or average levels of Compassion Satisfaction (High 48.86%, Average 51.13%) and Perceived support (High 44.31%, Average 55.68%). The majority reported Low to Average scores for Secondary Traumatic Stress (Low 30.68%, Average 67.04% and High 2.27%), Burnout (Low 4.54%, Average 89.77% and High 5.68%) and Moral Distress (Low 23.86% and Average 76.13%).
Conclusion: This study highlights that Flight Nurses in New Zealand's public sector generally experience a positive Professional Quality of Life, but that there are also instances of Burnout and Secondary Traumatic stress.
Impact statement: The finding of this study indicates that Flight Nurses who work in the public sector in New Zealand, have an average to high degree of the positive Professional Quality of Life - Compassion Satisfaction and Perceived Support, and a lower degree of the negative aspects of their work - Burnout, Secondary Traumatic Stress and Moral Distress.
Keywords: air ambulance; burnout; compassion fatigue; flight nurses; job satisfaction; professional quality of life.
Professional Quality of life is the measure of how the positive and negative aspects of one’s work influences how a person feels about the work they do. The negative aspects of the work that Flight Nurses do include being exposed to the trauma and suffering of their patients, which, in turn, can lead to them becoming overwhelmed by negative feelings and dread. If Flight Nurses experience their work as unfulfilling and frustrating due to management or institutional constraints, it may leave them feeling hopeless and helpless. These feelings can be accumulated over months or years and finally lead to a Flight Nurse feeling the loss of joy in their work. On the other hand, when Flight Nurses have positive experiences where they feel like they have fulfilled their duties, were able to provide excellent care and could make a positive contribution, they find satisfaction in their work, even if that work is difficult and traumatic. By understanding the lived experience of Flight Nurses, and their perspectives on their work, we are better able to formulate structures that support Flight Nurses. When Flight Nurses have a positive professional quality of life, they are more likely to remain in a profession that demands highly skilled and educated nurses, thus improving the quality care patients receive.