Occupational fatigue, workload and nursing teamwork in hospital nurses.

WHAT PROBLEM DID THE STUDY ADDRESS?: Fatigue is negatively associated with the health and safety of hospital nurses and patients. Nursing teamwork has been shown to improve the nursing care of hospitalized patients; yet, it is rarely explored in relation to nurse fatigue. WHAT WERE THE MAIN FINDINGS?: Greater nursing teamwork is significantly associated with lower acute and chronic fatigue. The relationships between workload and chronic fatigue were stronger when nursing teamwork (i.e. team orientation, shared mental model and team leadership) was high than when nursing teamwork was low. WHERE AND ON WHOM WILL THE RESEARCH HAVE AN IMPACT?: Improving nursing teamwork, in addition to monitoring and modifying workloads, can be a promising approach for managing fatigue in healthcare organizations.