Fostering Workforce Wellness: Insights from Nurse Managers and Early Childhood Educators

Abstract

Background/Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the challenges faced by essential professionals, such as nurse managers and early childhood educators (ECEs), who grapple with heightened stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue. In response, the Compassion, Practice, Relationships, and Restoration (CPR2) program was designed as a virtual, structured wellness intervention to address these pressing concerns among caregiving professionals. Methods: A mixed-methods study was employed to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary outcomes of CPR2, implemented across two cohorts: nurse managers in a pediatric hospital and early childhood educators (ECEs) serving equity-deserving communities. Participants completed electronic surveys at pre- and post-test assessing mindfulness, professional quality of life, healthy lifestyle behaviors, and perceived social cohesion. One month post-program, focus groups were conducted using a facilitation guide to evaluate program elements, including group structure, expectations, discussion themes, and sustainability. Results: Quantitative findings suggest that while nurse managers experienced significant reductions in compassion fatigue, along with improvements in mindfulness and perceived cohesion, ECEs exhibited stable levels of stress and burnout. Both cohorts reported enhanced sleep quality, emphasizing the program’s potential to foster critical aspects of wellbeing. Qualitative participant feedback highlighted the importance of organizational readiness, leadership engagement, and program flexibility for successful implementation. Conclusions: The study highlights the need for tailored, context-sensitive wellness interventions that recognize the unique challenges faced by different caregiving roles. It also emphasizes the potential for sustained impact when wellness initiatives are integrated into the organizational culture, further reinforcing the importance of ongoing commitment to workforce wellbeing in high-stress environments.