Status quo and influencing factors of work stress among hospice care physicians and nurses / 中华全科医师杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the work stress and its influencing factors among hospice care physicians and nurses in medical institutions in Shanghai.Methods:It was a cross-sectional study. The study was carried out between December 2021 and January 2022. By use of multistage random sampling, 256 hospice care physicians and nurses were selected from community healthcare centers, secondary and tertiary hospitals in Shanghai to attend a WeChat-based survey using a self-designed questionnaire. The chi-square test was used to compare the differences in prevalence of work stress and stressors among all subjects with different characteristics. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to explore the major determinants associated with work stress. And the sources of work stress and the expepectd decompression countermeasures were investigated.Results:A total of 256 valid questionnaires were collected with a recovery rate of 100.0%. The median of work stress score was 7.5 (6.0, 9.0). Logistic regression analysis showed that those aged>40 years old and working for ≥5 years in hospice care service had higher level of work stress ( OR=3.78, 2.04; P=0.007, 0.039), and those with monthly income>10 000 RMB Yuan had lower level of work stress ( OR=0.34, P=0.005). The top three stressors were the death of patients (88.3%, 226/256), low income (78.1%, 200/256), difficulty in promotion (67.2%, 172/256). The top three way that doctors and nurses desired to reduce work stress were to increase income (88.3%, 226/256) and optimize performance appraisal target (78.1%, 200/256) and promotion mechanism (66.0%, 169/256). Conclusions:In general, the work stress among hospice care physicians and nurses is at a high level in Shanghai and the stressors are widely distributed. Age, monthly salary and years of working in hospice care unit are independent factors of work stress. Improving salary, optimizing performance appraisal target and promotion mechanism are the most desired strategies to reduce work stress among hospice care physicians and nurses.