Occupation stress and personality among registered nurses of a private hospital

Abstract

Background : Occupational stress is a physical response that may be defined as an imbalance demand of the job, especially in professional nurses of private hospitals, which focus on the excellent quality of services to the patients.

Objective : To explore the level of occupational stress and personality of nurses of a private hospital and to examine factors related to occupation stress among professional nurses of a private hospital.

Design : Cross sectional descriptive study.

Setting : Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital.

Materials and Methods : Data were obtained from the professional nurse workers at Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital from October to December 2015. A total of 200 participants were recruited. Participants completed three questionnaires regarding to demographic characteristic, MPI questionnaires and Thai JCQ 54 questionnaires; the data were analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation, Independent t-test, One way ANOVA, Pearson’s correlation and multiple linear regression analysis.

Result : Occupational stress in professional nurse in dimension of Job control, psychological job demand, physical job demand and social support found in moderate level (78.0%, 53.0%, 65.0%, and 65.0% respectively), job security found in high level (87.0%) and hazard at work found in low level (53.0%). The most personality characteristics were extroversion and stability and the most type of personality was extroversion-stability. Factors associated with job stress were age, salary income, the adequacy of income, exercise behavior, drinking energy drinks behavior,
using pain control medicine behavior, department, nursing level, job hours, relationship with workmates, personality scale-E and scale-N. In multivariate analysis, the statistically significant factors with physical job demand were working in intensive care unit (ICU) and the in-patient department medical unit, psychological job demands were working the in-patient department medical unit and intensive care unit; factors associated with hazard at work were personality scale-N and working in operative care unit/labor room/newborn unit. Factors
associated with job control were the intensive care unit (ICU) and personality scale-N; social support was associated with personality scale-N.

Conclusion : In this study, the occupational stress among professional nurses was found in moderate level. However, occupational health department should emphasized psychological counseling services in order to cope with occupational stress for employees.