Table 4 Loading of the PS-ICU scale items from principal axis exploratory factor analysis with Oblimin direct rotation (items #14, #22, #30, #31, #39, #43 and #47 were preliminarily removed)

9

Disagreement and/or lack of coordination with other units concerning a patient’s treatment

0.668

10

Family conflict or disagreement concerning the patient’s treatment plan

0.554

26

Family whose beliefs or lifestyle are contradictory with my values or the functioning of the unit

0.537

27

Family’s misunderstanding of the gravity of the diagnosis or the prognosis of the patient

0.533

42

Uncertainty concerning the diagnosis or the therapy project of the patient

0.486

6

Shortage of beds in the unit

0.465

4

Contradictory information given by other healthcare professionals to the family

0.464

35

Family which does not trust me or does not trust the team

0.393

41

Caring for a patient who should not be treated by the ICU

0.375

15

Lack of support from the administration

0.302

34

Death of a patient with whom I had developed special ties

0.626

28

Series of patient deaths in the unit over a short period

0.615

45

Having to announce a bad diagnosis to the patient or his/her family or be present when such a diagnosis is announced

0.581

29

Patient who makes me think of someone close to me or of myself

0.540

1

Socially isolated end-of-life patient or one with no immediate family

0.509

49

Decision to stop or reduce treatment

0.476

7

Families’ distress or emotions

0.402

5

Caring for young patients or who have young children

0.363

44

Patient suffering physically or psychologically

0.347

18

Having to execute care tasks quickly in emergency cases

0.709

40

Treating complex or serious pathologies

0.622

16

Risk of error, fear of doing a poor job

0.596

37

Having to perform tasks for which I have neither knowledge nor skills

0.509

25

Patient who deteriorates in an unexpected or unexplained manner

0.405

20

Working pace or working hours hardly compatible with family or social life

0.745

23

Schedule changes, overtime

0.714

36

Continuous and heavy workload

0.574

50

Being on call or working nights

0.520

48

Accumulated workloads resulting from clinical activity, training, research or teaching

0.405

24

Working while experiencing difficult personal events

0.309

0.351

32

Lack of staff

0.347

0.344

46

Lack of equality in the distribution of tasks among healthcare professionals

0.326

13

Difficulty to find my place, have my skills recognized, or voice my opinion within the team

0.623

38

Assessed or judged by the other members of the team

0.54

17

Negative atmosphere prevailing in the team, gossip, rumors within the team

0.432

3

Lack of recognition (from the patient, the family, the team, the hierarchy)

0.425

21

Conflicts with members of the healthcare team

0.327

0.356

8

Inadequate or under-equipped healthcare space or defective materials

0.44

33

Non-supportive, aggressive or delirious patient

0.394

12

Incomprehensible or unnecessary care relative to the patient’s situation

0.385

2

Colleague not doing his/her work properly

0.380

19

Plaintive patient who makes many requests

0.364

0.374

11

Too many professionals around the patient in an emergency situation

0.339

Eigen values

3.71

3

3.24

2.24

1.92

% of variance explained

8.62

6.98

7.55

5.2

4.47