Effect of Expressive Arts Therapy on Death Anxiety in Intensive Care Unit Nurses

Ondokuz Mayıs University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Occupational Stress; Death Anxiety; Psychological Distress

Treatments: Behavioral: Expressive Arts Therapy

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07462936

BAP04-A-2024-5002 (Registry Identifier)

OMU-BAP04-A-2024-5002-RCT

Details and patient eligibility

About

This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the effect of expressive arts therapy on death anxiety among intensive care unit nurses. A total of 66 nurses were randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group participated in a structured expressive arts therapy programme consisting of weekly sessions for six weeks, while the control group received no intervention during the study period. Death anxiety levels were assessed using the Death Anxiety Scale before and after the intervention. The study aimed to determine whether expressive arts therapy is effective in reducing death anxiety and improving psychological well-being among intensive care unit nurses.

Full description

This randomized controlled study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured expressive arts therapy program in reducing death anxiety among intensive care unit nurses. Participants were randomly assigned to either an expressive arts therapy intervention group or a control group. The intervention consisted of six weekly sessions incorporating creative techniques such as drawing, clay work, and collage to facilitate emotional expression and reflection on experiences related to death and patient care. Death anxiety levels were assessed at baseline and immediately after the intervention using the Death Anxiety Scale. The study aimed to determine whether expressive arts therapy could reduce death anxiety and improve psychological well-being among intensive care nurses exposed to frequent patient mortality.

Enrollment: 66 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

Registered nurses working in intensive care units At least 1 year of experience in an intensive care setting Having previously encountered patient death in clinical practice Willingness to participate in the study

Providing written informed Exclusion Criteria:

Currently receiving psychological or psychiatric treatment for severe mental health problems Participation in similar psychological or psychosocial intervention programs during the study period

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

---

66 participants in 2 patient groups

Expressive Arts Therapy Group

Experimental group

Description:

This group participated in a structured expressive arts therapy programme consisting of weekly sessions for six weeks. Each session included creative activities such as drawing, clay work, and collage to facilitate emotional expression and processing of death-related experiences.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Expressive Arts Therapy

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

No Intervention