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Belastung und Beanspruchung in der Altenpflege und Konsequenzen für die Aus- und Fortbildung*

Aim: Employees in geriatric care show a specific and high level of psychological strain and psychosomatic complaints. In addition, job turnover is especially high. Does education meet sufficiently the requirements for preparation for this occupation? Method: 74 students training as geriatric nurses who had completed 6-weeks practical training and 84 geriatric nurses employed in institutions providing vocational education were questioned in spring 2006 by means of semi-structured and structured written questionnaires. The topics covered by the questionnaire included typical occupational stressors, physical disorders and psychological strain, deficits in vocational and advanced training. Results: Students and employees showed a very high level of commitment to their work. 65% of trainees and 72% of employees report a high or very high workload. Specific problems: not enough time for caring for patients, inadequate nursing success and too much time and effort needed for documentation. Vocational students also mentioned the following problems: shortage of staff (38%), time pressure (30%), poor integration into their team (32%), and their use as regular staff (25%). Employees express shortage of staff (26%) and time pressure (45%) as their main stressors. Both groups revealed a high level of psychological strain. Burnout is the dominant psychological symptom even among students (p < 0.05), with no significant differences between students and employees. Employees, however, suffer even more from an inability to relax (take their work problems home) than from burnout, and show a significantly higher strain level than students (p < 0.001). Conclusion: These research results reveal that students training in geriatric care already suffer from the same typical symptoms of job strain that professionals do. Therefore it seems to be necessary to modify and optimize the theoretical as well as the practical aspects of vocational training.