Exploring Secondary Traumatic Stress In Nurses

A unique feature of mental health nurses' work involves exposure to clients' descriptions of and reactions to trauma, and these experiences may indirectly cause distress to the nurse. This phenomenon has been termed "secondary traumatic stress" and is the focus of the study. The aim of the study was to explore STS experienced by nurses working in mental health services in Rwanda. A quantitative research study was conducted at Ndera Psychiatric Hospital, Rwanda using a sample of 50 nurses who provide mental health care to trauma survivors and mentally ill patients. A questionnaire was compiled consisting of the Trauma Attachment Belief Scale (TABS) and several open ended questions pertaining to the respondents current work situation and psychosocial support system. The majority of respondents' scores were situated between T-scores of 60 and 80, which are considered as very high or extremely high risk. With regard to others-safety, 98.0% (n=49) of the respondents scored 80 or above which, again, is extremely high and may indicate a strong disruption in these areas. Key words: Mental health, mental health nurse, Rwanda, STS