Perceived stress and related factors among nurses working in hospitals

Background: Occupational stress is one of the problems that may interfere with nurses performance like job satisfaction and adherence. The current study aimed to assess This study aimed to evaluate the perceived stress levels and stress-related factors in nurses working in hospitals in Iraq. Aim of the study:. This study was conducted to evaluate the perceived stress levels and stress-related factors in nurses working in hospitals in Iraq. Methodology: The population of the study consisted of nurses working in Kirkuk Children Hospital, Kirkuk Azadi Training Hospital, and the Cancer Center in Kirkuk, Iraq. The total size of the population was 1,384 nurses, including 590 in Kirkuk Children Hospital, 667 in Kirkuk Azadi Training Hospital, and 127 in the Cancer Center. ). The minimum sample size that could represent a population of 1,384 nurses was calculated as 300 subjects when the study data were formulated according to the simple random sampling formula. A personal information form was created by the researcher following a review of the literature to determine the socio-demographic characteristics of the nurses, such as age, gender, marital status, number of children, educational status, financial status, name of the hospital, department, the status of working shifts, weekly working hours, presence of enough nurses in the department, and whether non-nursing tasks increased workload. Stress was assessed by using the 14-item version of the perceived stress scale (PSS). Each item on the PSS-14 is evaluated on a 5-point Likert-type scale with options ranging from never (0) to very often (4). Seven items (4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 10th, and 13th items) containing positive statements are reverse scored. Scores on the PSS-14 range from 0 to 56, with a high score indicating high perceived stress. Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the scale is 0.84. Results: The current study showed that the mean age of the participants was 31.35±7.85, the mean work experience as a nurse was 7.32±7.39, and the mean weekly working hours was 46.77±7.01. It was determined that 56.5% of the participants were female, 70.3% were married, and that 35.6% did not have children. In addition, 95.4% of the participants had a diploma or a bachelor's degree, and 69.9% had more income than their expenses. While 56.2% of the participants worked in specialized units, 53.9% worked day shift permanently. Of the participants, 17.6% stated that there were enough nurses in their department, and 52.3% stated that non-nursing tasks increased their workload. The mean scores of the participants on the PSS were found to be 30.09±6.33. It was determined that 85% of them experienced a moderate level of stress. There is a significant differences between perceived stress of nurses and their educational level (t-test = 9.6; p value= 0.002). Conclusion: The study concluded that nurses experienced a moderate level of perceived stress. There is a significant differences between perceived stress of nurses and their educational level in which nurses with diploma or bachelor's degree exhibited more stress than those with master degree.