Determinants of Workplace Stress in the Health Sector: A Case Study of Nurses at the Tema General Hospital

Abstract

Stress is the body's way of responding to any form of demand placed on it. Job stress is experienced in relation to the day-to-day work required of nurses. Examination of stress is necessary because work stress is associated with fair or poor physical and mental health as well as a reduction in overall performance levels. This study was carried out to assess the prevalence of stress among nurses, identify the facility related factors contributing to stress and the coping mechanisms adopted by nurses to reduce stress. A descriptive cross-sectional study design was employed in this study. A total of 198 nurses at the TGH were randomly sampled from a total of 399 for the study. The stress component of the DASS scale was used to measure stress levels among the nurses. Data was analysed with STATA version 13 software. The prevalence of stress among the nurses was 99% with 45%, 30%, 20% and 4% having extremely severe, severe, moderate and mild stress respectively. No statistically significant relationship was found between demographic characteristics of nurses and their level of stress: age, sex, professional rank, level of education, marital status, years of working experience. Facility related factors contributing to stress among nurses were poor interpersonal relationship (mean=3.712, SD=1.052), role at work (mean=3.402, SD=1.067), level of control (mean=3.364, SD=0.984) and change (mean=3.164, SD=0.957). The high prevalence of stress among the nurses in this study suggests the need for multisectoral concerted efforts to address stress associated with the nursing profession. The factors contributing to stress among nurses provide a strong indication of the need for improvement in nursing management and leadership practices.