Examine the relationship between psychological resilience, compassion fatigue, and care behaviors among intensive care nurses

Objective: This study aims to examine the relationship between psychological resilience, compassion fatigue, and care behaviors among intensive care nurses. Method: This descriptive correlational study was conducted between April 2023 and March 2024 with 465 intensive care nurses working at two state hospitals and one university hospital affiliated with the Provincial Health Directorate in a province of the Aegean region. The data of the research was collected with "Personal Information Form," the "Compassion Fatigue Scale," the "Care Behaviors Scale," and the "Psychological Resilience Scale." Data were analyzed using the SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) for Windows 25.0 program. An independent t-test was used for comparing scale scores according to the personal characteristics of the participants in two independent groups, and a one-way ANOVA was used for comparisons among more than two independent groups. Pearson correlation was applied to test the relationship between the scales used in the study. Results: It was found that the total mean score of compassion fatigue scale was 53.70±23.77, the total mean score of caring behaviors scale was 5.10±0.61, and the total mean score of psychological resilience scale was 76.84±7.75. A statistically significant positive relationship (r=0.290, p<0.05) has been found between nurses' perception of caring behaviors and psychological resilience. A significant negative relationship (r=-0.226, p<0.05) has been determined between compassion fatigue and psychological resilience. Conclusion: In this study, compassion fatigue of intensive care nurses was found to be low, perception of caring behaviors and psychological resilience levels were found to be high. It was determined that as psychological resilience increases, compassion fatigue decreases, and as compassion fatigue decreases, care behaviors are positively affected. Keywords: Compassion fatigue, psychological resilience, care, care behaviors, intensive care nurse