Wellness Initiative for Employees Working in Long-Term Care

Burnout and workplace stress significantly contribute to decreased employee satisfaction and productivity, underscoring the need for wellness initiatives in the workplace. This quality improvement project aimed to enhance employee well-being through a wellness program focusing on stress management, sleep hygiene, nutrition, and exercise. The project, “Caring for the Caregiver Series: Four Pillars of Health,” included three in-person educational sessions addressing key wellness components identified in the American Nurses Association, “Pulse on the Nation's Nurses COVID-19 Survey Series: Mental Health and Wellness Survey 1”, August 2020 needs assessment. The primary goal was to equip employees with practical knowledge and skills to improve their physical and mental health. Implemented across three long-term care facilities (LTC), employees completed the Mental Health Quality of Life (MHQoL) survey before and after the intervention. Statistical analysis using Welch's t-test revealed a significant improvement in MHQoL scores post-intervention, with pre-test scores averaging 17.82 (SD = 22.39) and post-test scores averaging 7.54 (SD = 9.71), yielding a t-value of 2.63 and p-values of 0.0056 (one-tailed) and 0.0012 (two-tailed). However, a one-way ANOVA showed no significant difference in outcomes based on the number of sessions attended (F(2, 114) = 0.34, p = 0.71). While the findings were statistically significant, the small sample size (n=17 for post-test) limits generalizability and should be interpreted cautiously. Regardless, the initiative successfully empowered participants to manage personal and work-related stressors, emphasizing the critical role of educational interventions in promoting mental well-being in healthcare settings.