Job-related stress is at an all-time high among healthcare providers in the US. Due to exposure to overwhelming work stressors, approximately half of emergency department (ED) physicians and nurses experience burnout which leads to lower productivity, lower quality of care, higher risk of medical errors, higher rates of absenteeism and eventually turnover. Our research team identified self-care behaviors that healthcare professionals engage in while at work to cope with job-related stress and attributes of the built environment that may support those coping behaviors. We used a mixed methods research approach that utilized a staff survey which was developed and distributed to physicians, residents, nurse practitioners and nurses working (n=85) in three EDs within the UF Health system at Shands (hospital-based), Kanapaha (free-standing) and Spring Hill (free-standing) in Gainesville, FL and face-to-face interviews with 20 healthcare workers from those same EDs.
