Effect of Progressive Muscle Relaxation Training using the Demonstration Method on Depression among Nurses Working in COVID-19 Wards in Military Hospitals

With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, psychological disorders, such as depression, increased in nurses, highlighting the necessity of timely and effective interventions to prevent their negative consequences.

The present study aimed to determine the effect of progressive muscle relaxation training using the demonstration method on depression among nurses who are in close contact with Covid-19.

This randomized clinical trial was conducted in 2020-2021. The statistical population consisted of nurses working in Aja hospitals in Tehran, Iran. A total of 46 nurses were selected by convenience sampling method and randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The nurses in the intervention group were trained on the progressive muscle relaxation technique by practical demonstration method; thereafter, they were encouraged to perform it, while no intervention was performed for the control group. Data were collected by demographic characteristics questionnaires and the depression section of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale- 21 Items (DASS-21). Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software (version 21) using Fisher's exact test, Chi-square, independent t-test, and paired t-test.

There was no significant difference between the intervention and control groups in terms of demographic characteristics (P>0.05). Depression scores in nurses in the intervention and control groups were 13.65±3.19 and 14.08±2.69 before the intervention, respectively (P=0.621), while after the intervention, they reached 9.95±2.36 and 13.95±2.73 (P<0.001). In the post-test phase, the nurses' depression significantly reduced in the intervention group (P <0.001); nonetheless, no significant change was observed in the control group (P=0.479).

The results of this study pointed to the effectiveness of progressive muscle relaxation training using demonstration in the reduction of depression among nurses working in Covid-19 wards. Therefore, it is suggested that nurses be trained on the use of this method and encouraged to put it into practice.