Critique of Systematic Research Review

Introduction

The systematic review evaluates the occurrence of high burnout levels among nurses, and the contributing factors to this problem. Due to the unique nature of nurses’ working environment, they are exposed to higher levels of emotional exhaustion compared to other professionals who interfere with their job performance (Aronson, Glynn, & Squires, 2013).  It is also one of the factors that contribute towards the high turnover rate and work related stress, job dissatisfaction, and poor health among the medics.  However, few studies have been conducted to explore the relationship between the three variables. Therefore, the review seeks to shed more insight on the interconnection between burnout, job satisfaction, and work-related stress.

Undoubtedly, this review is instrumental in providing a solution for the high turnover rates of nurses in the world today. The health sector continues to encounter a significant percentage of workers moving from one health institution to another (Delves-Yates, 2015). As a result, the overall cost of recruiting and training nurses has increased, and the quality of services in the hospitals is also affected negatively (Carpenito & Carpenito, 2013). Despite the continuous efforts by managers to retain the nurses within their organizations, the trend continues to manifest itself in almost all the health facilities. By conducting the systematic research review, the analysts help to establish the key reasons why most nurses fail to stay in one hospital for a lengthy period. The information can be employed by managers to alter the situation, as they devise strategies to deal with the problem (Dimond, 2015). Consequently, the expenses of recruiting new workers will drop, and quality will be enhanced in hospitals.

Research Rigor

Additionally, the reviewer was committed to providing trustworthy information as evidenced by the rigorous research undertaken in the study. First of all, there is a careful screening of articles to find the most relevant articles on the topic of research. There was a comprehensive research on six databases that provide information on various nursing issues to find materials applicable in the study.  Moreover, the reviewers took a step further to ensure the collection of as many studies as possible. Given the strict inclusion criteria adopted during the review, it is a clear effort directed towards the development of reliable information. For instance, the study is based on published scholarly articles that are readily available in their full text. They also had to use empirical studies, evaluate two or more variables, and centered on nurses in different settings.

Besides, the exclusion criterion is straightforward and helps to retain only the most relevant articles. For instance, documents with insufficient details, inclusive of other medical professionals like doctors, and unpublished materials were eliminated. Since an independent reviewer went through the selected sample of articles, it is clear that the selection process was free from bias. Moreover, the reviewers had an opportunity to interact and listen to the ideas of the third party, which positively influences their understanding of the topic. Consequently, the systematic research review illuminates the relationship between work related stress, burnout, work-related satisfaction, and satisfaction of nurses in the sector.

Evidence Levels

Another important factor to critique is the levels of evidence in the systematic review. Research indicates that the levels included are dependent on the topic of interest, and availability of information (Fitzpatrick & Whall, 2016). Noteworthy is the fact that researchers are encouraged to collect a lot of information in the first stage of any study, hence lead to an in-depth investigation of a phenomenon.

From the current systematic research review under analysis, two levels of evidence are provided. The first proponent incorporates the study of the general relationship between work related stress, burnout, and job satisfaction. From the onset, care was taken to ensure that the documents included in the review process were relevant to the three variables- a condition that is confirmed in the first line of the discussion segments of the research. According to the reviewer, after reading through different materials, they discovered that high burnout interferes with the nurses’ efficiency level. Moreover, they also discover the existence of a relationship between the three variables under investigation.

Second evidence level is also provided in the study. Here, the reviewer selects two or more factors and proceeds to analyze their connection using the selected articles. There are eleven sub-topics, where each assesses the presence of a relationship between various elements. For instance, one part examines the link between burnout and job satisfaction, while another focuses on work satisfaction and general health of the nurses. To answer these questions, the reviewers find the most appropriate articles from the huge selection and use them to show the existence of a connection between the variables. Furthermore, the third level evidence has also been developed through the individual evaluation of each article. Consequently, it is possible to determine the document that covers the topic or sub-topic comprehensively.

Clarity of Presentation

Among the most prominent proponents of this systematic review is the particular arrangement and description of the research finding in an understandable format. First of all, the selection procedure is summarized in the form of a flow chart; it is easy to trace the steps taken to ensure the collection of the right articles without going through the literature. Moreover, the reviewer provides important details about the documents employed to complete the research successfully. Since information is organized in a tabular format, it is easy to obtain data about the past research and contribution to the systematic review. For example, one can access data about the research method, sample, and results by a simple click on the attached link. However, failure to provide the title and author if each document created leads to some degree of ambiguity to the reader. The users cannot go to the particular article to confirm the arguments made in the review process.

Studies’ Findings

The systematic research review discovers the existence of a relationship between job contentment, work-related stress, and burnout rates. Although most of the studies do not examine the three factors concurrently, they mainly focus on two of the variables. A careful study of the connections shows a high correlation between the elements. Interestingly, different studies show a variance in the expression of a relationship between the elements. For instance, one of the studies states that work-related stress is a significant contributor to the development of high burnout levels in nurses. At the same time, another article attributes the lack of job satisfaction to the high exhaustion level that is synonymous with most nurses. Since the consideration of only two of the variable leads to conflicting findings, it would be better to conduct research on the three items simultaneously. As a result, it will be possible to identify the cause and effect relationship between the components, hence increase the degree of comprehension on the reasons of great nurse turnover rates in various hospitals.

Conclusion

The suppositions reflect on the same observations and opinions in the discussion parts. It starts off by acknowledging the lack of adequate research on the three variables of interests. Since the articles reviewed do not explain in a comprehensive manner the direction between the elements, the reviewers express the need of carrying out future studies centered on the variables. As a result, the real cause and effect link between the variables will be discovered. Consequently, the users of the information can place reliance on such researches, hence realize a drop in the turnover rate of nurses. Therefore, the key implication of this systematic research review is the identification of a research gap, which can be filled through the incorporation of burnout, stress, and job satisfaction among nurses in a single study.

Link to the SRR article:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3717733/