Developing a nursing staff support group model.

A nursing staff is an open system that involves constant interactions with other members, patients, and other systems within the hospital environment on an ongoing basis. These constant interactions can contribute to conflict, ambiguity, stress, and strain in the nursing system. Nursing staff support groups are beginning to emerge as an integral part of the health care system. These nursing staff support groups may assist the nursing staff in managing conflict, ambiguity, stress, and strain. The authors explore and present a proposed nursing staff support group model that focuses on the development of the components, i.e., group stressors, clinician's knowledge base, stressed group and effective group behaviors, the clinician's role and expected group outcomes.