Pet Therapy and Resilience

Abstract

Nurses are consistently in high-stress working conditions and exposed to direct insults caring for the critically ill. Nurse-related stress and burnout threaten nurses’ mental well-being and contribute to turnover. Workload and nurse resiliency are the focus of our frontline intensive care unit nurses. The project aimed to improve resiliency among nurses and the healthcare team in an inpatient Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) and implement an evidence-based strategy to enhance resilience. A weekly therapy dog project was established in the tranquility room adjacent to the MICU for ten weeks. The MICU team members were encouraged to interact with the therapy dog in person and rate their mood before and after the pet therapy visit. The staff mood scores increased after each pet therapy visit, supporting this project’s findings that pet therapy positively impacts employee well-being, enhances mood, and increases resilience. Given the high levels of burnout and the worsening nursing shortage, this project has value in supporting the healthcare team through their stressful workloads and environments.