Effects of Pilates Exercises on Professional Self-concept in Nurses Working in Intensive Care Units and Emergency Departments

Background: Professional Self-Concept (PSC) affects one's way of thinking, role evolution, professional behavior, and performance. The present study aimed to determine the effect of Pilates exercises on PSC in nurses working in Intensive Care Units (ICU) and emergency departments. Materials and Methods: This quantitative study was a randomized controlled field trial. The study population consisted of all nurses working in ICUs and emergency departments from 2016 to 2017. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 110 nurses were assigned to intervention and control groups using a permuted block randomization method. The Nurses' Self-Concept Questionnaire (NSCQ) was completed by both groups. The intervention group performed Pilates 30 min each session at home for 8 weeks. The Chi-squared test, Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis test, and t-test were employed to analyze the collected data. Results: Mean and standard deviation of the PSC score was 223.73 (23.35) in the intervention group and 215.75 (34.54) in the control group at baseline; it reached 229.17 (23.36) in the intervention group and 217.77 (34.44) in the control group at the end of the study. The difference was not significant. The paired-samples t-test showed that the score of PSC was increased by 5.45 points on average in the intervention group after the Pilates exercises, which was statistically significant (t54= 25.80, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Pilates enhances the score of PSC in nurses working in ICUs and emergency departments. The designing and implementation of these easy and safe exercises may prove beneficial for nurses.