'The chest pains dropped me to the floor'

Anxiety and burnout among nurses during the delta and omicron waves is seriously worrying, research exclusively obtained by The Oz reveals.

Anxiety and burnout among nurses during the delta and omicron waves is seriously worrying, research exclusively obtained by The Oz reveals.

“I was having chest pains from the stress … Working extra shifts, working overtime, just being stressed out about the holidays. Working short (staffed) every day. It just takes a toll on you.”

This is the distressing testimony from nursing aide Jessica Knudson, now  27, who reveals she first experienced chest pains after just nine months  working at a NSW aged care facility during  Covid.

“The chest pains dropped me to the floor. It was pretty intense,” she told The Oz.

Jess Knudson in PPE.

“I was brand new. I had just finished my qualifications … We were so incredibly short-staffed. People were leaving left, right and centre because they were worried about Covid. I was a new nurse, going on the floor for 40 residents with one other nurse.

“And these are high care residents. They’re people who need the whole range of care.”

Knudson quit her job in January 2021 and started at another Southern Highlands aged care facility. At first it was “a breath of fresh air” but eventually the same problems arose.

Nurses across Australia are suffering “concerning” levels of anxiety and depression and are overwhelmingly burnt out, according to a UTS study of almost 900 nurses from September 2021 to February 2022, amid the Delta and Omicron waves. 

Knudson, who was balancing work and a nursing degree at the University of Wollongong, described working in full PPE for 12 hours each day while short-staffed.

“At the end of the shift you are completely drenched in sweat, you're extra tired because it takes it out of you … You had to change halfway through your shift,” she said. 

Jess Knudson.

The chest pains returned in the middle of a Covid scare at work. Short-staffed, she “was just trying to figure out how I was going to get through the day”. Again it was the sign she needed to quit. That was  January 2022.

“I thought, ‘Yep, this is happening again. I can't let this happen again],” she said.

Knudson, who is a part of the Nurses and Midwives Association, now works as a disability support worker and said she wouldn't work in aged care again until there was reform.

The UTS study found eight in 10 nurses reported clinically significant anxiety symptoms, while 60 per cent reported levels of emotional exhaustion associated with high burnout.

Nurses had a mean generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) score of 4.5 out of six, an increase from 3.95 the previous year. A score of three or more is considered a “strong signal” for anxiety and professional help is urged.

“There is certainly a trend of increased levels of anxiety,” UTS nursing researcher Suzanne Sheppard-Law said.

“Depersonalisation” 

Dr Sheppard-Law said the “depersonalisation” experienced by about 1 in 5 nurses was particularly concerning.

“Depersonalisation is around a sense of detachment which is not normal for nurses," Dr Sheppard-Law said. 

“We go into the profession because we care about people and questions where you are almost standoffish - that is not good because it”s burnout and lack of empathy.”

Of the almost 900 nurses recruited anonymously for the study, more than 600 left open-ended responses about their experiences. 

“The distress is palpable … It gives you goosebumps when you read it. As a nurse myself, I was so upset to read some of the words,” Dr Sheppard-Law said.

One nurse wrote: “Fatigue. Exhaustion. Decreased physical exercise due to fatigue. Increased sugar intake. Sore feet, sore legs, sore back. Decreased productivity in relation to personal life. Generalised decreased mood. Stress, anxiety, concern, resentment and reassessment of future career.”

“I was experiencing panic attacks about coming to work,” another said. 

“The use of N95 masks and extra PPE all day, everyday, has caused health issues such as breathing difficulties, skin irritation, skin breakdown or pressure injury on ears, nose and chin, allergies, headaches, and dehydration,” wrote another nurse.