Comparison of work stress, burnout and anxiety levels of nurses working and not working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine and compare the work stress, burnout and anxiety levels of nurses who worked and did not work in the pandemic clinic for at least 1 month during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: This comparative descriptive, comparative, cross-sectional and correlational study was conducted with 271 nurses using the snowball sampling method. Data collection was carried out between January 15 and March 15, 2022 by sending an online questionnaire to the participants via social media. Ethical approval was obtained from the University Health Sciences Ethics Committee and consent was obtained from the participants. Data were collected with socio-demographic data form, Maslach Burnout Scale, Job Stress Scale, Worry and Anxiety Scale. Numbers, percentiles, chi-square test, Mann Whitney U test, Kruskal Wallis H test and Pearson correlation analysis were used in the analysis of the data. All statistics were accepted as p<.05 level of significance. Results: Women working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic compared to men, nurses with children from those who do not have children, those who work more than 40 hours a week working less than 40 hours, those who have a family history of COVID-19 diagnosis have higher average scores on Maslach Burnout Scale emotional burnout and statistically significant. was found to be significant (p<.05). It was determined that the Maslach Burnout Scale personal achievement sub-dimension score averages of men working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic was higher and statistically significant than women (p<.05). It was determined that the anxiety and anxiety scale mean scores of women working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic were higher than men and statistically significant (p<.05). Work stress and emotional exhaustion, depersonalization of nurses working and not working in the COVID-19 clinic; there is a statistically significant negative relationship between worry and anxiety and job stress and personal success, and a statistically significant positive relationship between worry and anxiety and emotional exhaustion (p<.05). Conclusion: It was determined that whether or not working in the COVID-19 clinic was not a factor affecting nurses' burnout, work stress, anxiety and anxiety. However, it was determined that factors such as being a woman, having a child, working over 40 hours, and the presence of a COVID-19 diagnosis in the family affect emotional exhaustion and anxiety and anxiety levels in nurses working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic. In addition, it was determined that the personal achievement levels of male nurses working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic were negatively affected. As the work stress of nurses increased, emotional stagnation and depersonalization decreased; It was determined that as the worry and anxiety increased, job stress and emotional exhaustion increased. It was determined that as the anxiety and anxiety of the nurses working in the COVID-19 pandemic clinic increased, their personal success decreased.