TERTIARY HEALTH FACILITY

Nurses frequently experience emotional and psychological distress when confronted with patient Nurses frequently experience emotional and psychological distress when confronted with patient death, which can affect their mental well being and professional performance. Coping strategies are therefore vital in managing grief, preventing burnout, and sustaining quality care. This study assessed the coping strategies adopted by nurses and the factors influencing their use in a selected tertiary institution in Benin City, Nigeria. A descriptive cross-sectional design was employed, involving 227 nurses. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 27.0 to identify coping strategies, their perceived effectiveness, and the relationship between utilization, effectiveness, and influencing factors.Findings revealed that the most commonly adopted strategies included religious or spiritual practices, seeking emotional support from colleagues, debriefing sessions, suppressing emotions, maintaining professional emotional distance, and reliance on cultural beliefs. These approaches were generally perceived as effective, while formal training and institutional support programs were the least utilized and considered less effective. Results further indicated that factors such as years of professional experience, prior exposure to patient death, age, and marital status significantly influenced the type and effectiveness of coping strategies adopted. A significant association was also observed between higher utilization of coping strategies and greater perceived effectiveness (p = 0.01).The study concludes that nurses in the selected institution primarily depend on personal and peer-based coping mechanisms, which are largely effective. However, formal training and institutional support programs remain underutilized. It is therefore recommended that healthcare institutions priori tize structured training, grief counseling, and supportive programs while considering individual and demographic factors that shape coping patterns.