Coping Strategies Utilized by Nurse-Mothers on Full Night Shift

The study explored the coping strategies employed by nurse-mothers working full night shifts in selected hospitals in Eastern Pangasinan. Data regarding the nurses' socio-demographic profiles were collected through a survey instrument grounded in relevant literature and research studies. A descriptive research design was utilized, incorporating various statistical tools such as frequencies, percentages, weighted means, t-tests, and ANOVA. The nurse-mothers predominantly consist of young adults who manage their own families. Many have chosen not to pursue advanced nursing education and receive compensation based on the salary grade for new nurses. Although they hold job order positions, many have dedicated several years to their service and typically have an average number of children. They are primarily assigned to frontline areas, specifically the Outpatient Department (OPD) and the Emergency Room (ER). In terms of coping strategies, these nurse mothers confidently rely most on physical and spiritual methods, while emotional and mental, as well as socio-economic strategies, are utilized to a lesser extent. The pre-test results indicated that there were no significant differences in the extent of coping strategies related to most profile variables, except for civil status and salary. It was found that older married nurse-mothers, as well as those with higher salary grades, positions, and numbers of children, tended to utilize physical coping strategies more frequently. Additionally, older married nurse-mothers who worked in less toxic environments were more likely to employ socio-economic coping strategies. Notably, married nurse-mothers predominantly used spiritual coping strategies. Based on these findings, future research is recommended to explore other coping strategies employed by nurse-mothers who work different shifts.