The effect of reminiscence therapy on burnout and job satisfaction in intensive care nurses: A randomized controlled study
Burnout and Job Satisfaction in Intensive Care Nurses
Keywords:
Burnout, intensive care, job satisfaction, nurses, reminiscence therapyAbstract
Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of reminiscence therapy on burnout and job satisfaction among intensive care nurses.
Method: The study was conducted using a randomized controlled experimental design in the intensive care units of a state hospital in Türkiye between May and July 2025. Twenty-four intensive care nurses who met the inclusion criteria and agreed to participate in the study were randomly assigned to experimental (n=12) and control (n=12) groups. The experimental group received reminiscence therapy training, consisting of four sessions once a week for four weeks; no intervention was carried out with the control group. Data were collected using a personal information form, the Minnesota Job Satisfaction Scale, and the Short Form of the Burnout Scale in a pretest-posttest manner. Independent and paired sample t-tests and mixed-design ANOVA were used for statistical analyses, with the significance level set at p<0.05.
Results: The experimental and control groups were homogeneous in terms of their demographic characteristics (p>0.05). In the post-test, the mean job satisfaction score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group (63.25±8.10; 46.67±8.89; p<0.001), while the mean burnout score was significantly lower (36.16±8.78; 53.58±6.17; p<0.001). The results of the mixed-design ANOVA showed that both the group effect and the time*group interaction were significant for both job satisfaction and burnout, supporting the notion that reminiscence therapy increased job satisfaction and decreased burnout in the intervention group.
Conclusions: Reminiscence therapy appears to be an effective psychosocial intervention that increases job satisfaction and reduces burnout among intensive care nurses. It is recommended that reminiscence-based programs should be institutionally supported and integrated into care environments for nurses working under intense stress.
Practice Implications
Integrating reminiscence therapy as a routine psychosocial support strategy within intensive care units can aid nurses in managing work-related stress, enhance job satisfaction, and reduce burnout rates. By incorporating structured reminiscence-based programs into institutional well-being initiatives, the psychological resilience of nurses may be strengthened, thereby improving the quality of patient care.
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