Background Professional quality of life amongst nurses in psychiatric observations units may be affected by working conditions such as an overflow of mental health care users (MHCUs), a shortage of nurses, lack of specialised staff and inadequate infrastructure to accommodate MHCUs amongst others. Aim The aim of the study was to investigate the professional quality of life amongst nurses in psychiatric observation units. Setting The study was conducted in psychiatric observation units in eight hospitals in the Metropole District Health Services in the Western Cape. Method A quantitative descriptive survey design using the Professional Quality of Life (ProQoL version 5) questionnaire was conducted with an all-inclusive sample of 175 nurses. The ProQoL has two scales, namely, the compassion satisfaction and the compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue includes two subscales, burnout and secondary traumatic stress. Ethics to conduct the study was obtained from the Research Ethics Committee at the university and the Department of Health in the Western Cape. Results A response rate of 93% (n = 163) was obtained. Respondents reported moderate compassion satisfaction. Psychiatric nurse specialists and registered nurses reported lower compassion satisfaction than enrolled nurses and nursing assistants. This came with moderate levels of burnout and high levels of secondary traumatic stress, with enrolled nurses and enrolled nursing assistants reporting lower levels than the other professional groups. Conclusion Psychiatric nurse specialists and registered nurses experienced higher burnout and secondary traumatic stress and lower compassion satisfaction than the lower categories of nurses.

中文翻译：

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精神科观察单位护士的职业生活质量。

背景 精神科观察单位护士的职业生活质量可能会受到工作条件的影响，例如精神卫生保健用户 (MHCU) 过多、护士短缺、缺乏专业工作人员以及容纳 MHCU 的基础设施不足等。目的 本研究的目的是调查精神科观察单位护士的职业生活质量。设置 该研究在西开普省 Metropole 区卫生服务中心的八家医院的精神病观察单位进行。方法 使用专业生活质量（ProQoL 第 5 版）问卷对 175 名护士的全包样本进行定量描述性调查设计。ProQoL有两个量表，分别是同情心满意和同情心疲劳。同情疲劳包括两个分量表，倦怠和继发性创伤压力。进行这项研究的伦理学是从大学的研究伦理委员会和西开普省的卫生部获得的。结果获得了 93% (n = 163) 的响应率。受访者报告了适度的同情满意度。精神科护士专家和注册护士报告的同情满意度低于注册护士和护理助理。这伴随着中等程度的倦怠和高水平的继发性创伤压力，注册护士和注册护理助理报告的水平低于其他专业群体。