Work Related Stress among Saudi Nurses Working in Intensive Care Units

Abstract

Background and Aim: Work-Related Stress in nurses is considered a common problem worldwide. Therefore, this study aims to identify the sources of stress among nurses in Saudi Arabia to understand the effect of these stressors on their mental health and physical health. Materials and Methods: A self-administrative questionnaire to assess sources of work stress, physical health, and mental health was administrated to 213 nurses working in intensive care units. Results: The results demonstrated that workload, lack of resources and support, and dealing with death and dying are the principal sources of work's stress. Nurses reported that back pain, headache, and fatigue are the most common health problems while nervousness (32.4%) and exhaustion (30%) were the most frequent mental health problem. Moreover, the results revealed a positive correlation between Work-Related Stress and Health Problems. Conclusion: This study contributes to the emerging body of knowledge about work-related stress in the nursing profession and it is strongly supporting the need for strategic plan and intervention programs to reduce stress symptoms among nurses in Saudi Arabia.

Burnout and job satisfaction among critical care nurses in Saudi Arabia and their contributing factors: A scoping review

“…Other findings of this review were the effects of work overload ( p = .01) and death and dying ( p ˂ .05) on burnout and job satisfaction (Alasmari & Douglas, 2012 ; Batran, 2019 ). In a cross‐sectional study, Cishahayo et al., ( 2017 ) reported a statistically significant association between burnout and work overload among ICU nurses ( p ˂ .05).…”

“…In contrast, some studies found that senior nurses with extensive ICU experience were exposed to prolonged work‐related stress and are, therefore, more liable to burnout and wanting to leave their job (Abumayyaleh et al., 2016 ; Batran, 2019 ). A possible explanation for these contradictory findings is that they were generated in different studies with different participants.…”

“…Until recently, two previous reviews were conducted internationally to determine the level of burnout (Friganovic et al., 2019 ) or job satisfaction (Dilig‐Ruiz et al., 2018 ) among ICU nurses; however, none of these reviews were designed to include both variables or were aimed to identify the factors associated with these two variables. In Saudi Arabia, multiple studies have provided evidence on burnout, job‐related stressors and job satisfaction among ICU nurses (Batran, 2019 ), anxiety and stress coping strategies (Alharbi & Alshehry, 2019 ) and factors that influence ICU nurses' job satisfaction, such as leadership style (Alshahrani & Baig, 2016 ). However, these findings have not yet been synthesized.…”

Registered nurses’ perceptions on the factors affecting nursing shortage in the Republic of Vanuatu Hospitals: A qualitative study

“…If stress was managed promptly, it will prevent burnout, job satisfaction and improve patients’ quality care. Although studies have shown that stress affect all nurses due to worldwide nursing shortage, the nursing managers and leaders in Vanuatu, who have in contact with nurses regularly must have better understanding of stress and its relationship and also its symptoms in order to manage stress effectively [ 29 , 30 ]. It is important for Vanuatu MoH to adopt stress management process by other countries in order to identify and management stress among nurses effectively.…”

“…The challenges of having nurses gone on early retirement is when not enough nurses for replacement, however nurses with medical reasons need to leave their profession as they will negatively impact patient’s care and also their well-being. Studies supported that mental and physical health of nurses has significant effects on the quality of care provided to the patient [ 30 , 31 ]. On the other hand, other studies supported that senior nurses leave their profession before their retirement age due to medical reason and is necessary for patients’ safety to decrease mortality [ 32 , 33 ].…”