Date of Conferral
2020
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Health Services
Advisor
Manoj Sharma
Abstract
Physicians face different stressful situations daily when caring for patients in the emergency room (ER). The individual ER physician’s ability to cope with stressful situations varies considerably and affects patient care. Developing a sense of coherence (SOC) is thought to be one of the significant strategies for self-regulation in stressful conditions like those in the ER. The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between SOC and coping abilities among emergency physicians in the United States. The study used a quantitative, cross-sectional design to assess physicians’ SOC and coping skills using an SOC scale and a coping scale, respectively. The salutogenic theory—the theoretical framework in the study—explains how emergency physicians need to understand the stressors in their line of work, define the meaning of these stressful situations, and establish ways of coping with them. The research questions focused on whether a correlation exists between the SOC elements and the various aspects of stress. Convenience sampling was used to obtain a sample size of 140 ER physicians. The findings revealed a statistically significant relationship between SOC and coping with stress (p = 0.002) analyzed by SPSS. This study has implications for positive social change. Its results could improve understanding of SOC among ER physicians and thus enhance their coping skills and, ultimately, improve patient care.
Recommended Citation
Masihi, Melina, "The Relationship between Sense of Coherence and Coping with Stress Among Emergency Room Physicians" (2020). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 8943.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/8943
