Our aim is implementation of the real-time wearable system for assessment of stress of nurses during work. We use a wearable wireless sensor to collect the physiological data. We then examine the subjective assessment of stress to look for associations of physiological parameters.

For collecting physiological data we use Hidalgo Equivital physiological monitors and Zephyr BioHarness physiological monitors. Each sensor is capable of recording multiple physiological parameters such as RR intervals, skin temperature, breading rate, body position and acceleration. On the picture is shown Zephyr BioHarness physiological monitor and its position on the body.

In order to keep chest straps under best hygienic condition every chest strap is thoroughly washed each and every time before used on a subject.

All participants in study should fill the form.

In order to access the form you need to be sign in with your UAH mail account with the browser you are using to access the form.

If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to sign this consent form.

Numerous research reports have revealed that hospital environments are physically and psychologically stressful to nurses who work in them. Stress, particularly over long periods of time, is believed to be associated with chronic illnesses including hypertension, cardiovascular disease, depression, and immune disorders. Stress has also been linked to poor sleep, substance abuse, and obesity. Stress is believed to be associated with nearly half of diseases and deaths in the United States. Not only can stress be harmful to individual nurses, but stressful work environments put patient safety at risk.

Chronic stress in the work place can also lead to poor human-resource outcomes including absenteeism, burnout, and job turnover. When experienced nurses resign from their jobs, their expertise for patient care is lost. Expertise in nursing care helps to reduce the incidence of errors, and nursing units with higher percentages of experienced nurses are safer than those with high percentages of inexperienced nurses. Inexperienced nurses have fewer coping strategies for acute and chronic stress. They are at risk of making errors due to time pressure, lack of competence for first-time experiences, being unfamiliar with work processes, and having inadequate communication, particularly in hand-offs. Thus, there is a need to understand what situations create stress and what coping strategies can be effective.

We are asking for your participation in the investigation because in simulations, the same situation is presented to many different nursing students. This is the first step to understanding stressors and stress responses. We hope that you agree to participate and will provide you with a letter acknowledging your contribution to the research.