Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic.
Department of Statistics, Faculty of Economics and Management, Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Sep 30;16(19):3670. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16193670.
As nursing is one of the most stressful occupations worldwide, its management warrants more attention to identify possible ways to cope with its pressures. This study aims to evaluate whether animal-assisted therapy (AAT) with the presence of a dog affects the stress level of nurses. As a stress biomarker, we used salivary cortisol level testing. Twenty female nurses (mean age: 30) in physical medicine (PMR) ( = 11) and the department of internal medicine and long-term care (IM < C) ( = 9). On each of the three observed days, saliva was collected at 10 a.m. and then again after 50 min. The first sampling was performed during a normal working process without a break (Condition A), the second was carried out during a normal working process with a break of choice (Condition B), and the third sampling was performed during a normal working process with a break with AAT (Condition C). All participants were enrolled in all three interventional conditions in a randomized order. The results demonstrated the effect of a reduction of cortisol levels in Condition C, where AAT was included ( = 0.02) only in nurses recruited from the IM < C department. By way of explanation, nurses from the PMR department already showed low cortisol levels at baseline. We propose including AAT with a dog in healthcare facilities where nurses are at a high risk of stress.
由于护理是全球压力最大的职业之一，因此需要更多关注其管理，以确定应对压力的可能方法。本研究旨在评估动物辅助疗法（AAT）是否会通过一只狗的存在来影响护士的压力水平。我们使用唾液皮质醇水平测试作为压力生物标志物。共有 20 名女性护士（平均年龄：30 岁）参与了物理医学科（PMR）（= 11）和内科及长期护理科（IM < C）（= 9）。在观察的三天中的每一天，上午 10 点采集唾液，然后在 50 分钟后再次采集。第一次采样是在没有休息的正常工作过程中进行的（条件 A），第二次是在有选择的休息时间的正常工作过程中进行的（条件 B），第三次采样是在有 AAT 的正常工作过程中进行的（条件 C）。所有参与者均以随机顺序参与了所有三种介入条件。结果表明，在包括 AAT 的条件 C 中，皮质醇水平降低了（= 0.02），仅在从 IM < C 部门招募的护士中出现了这种情况。通过解释，PMR 部门的护士在基线时已经表现出较低的皮质醇水平。我们建议在高压力环境下的医护场所中引入带有狗的 AAT。
