The present study was intended to measure the level of mental health among nurses working for university hospitals and to reveal its related factors. The self-administered questionnaires were given to 1,486 nurses employed in 6 participating hospitals...
The present study was intended to measure the level of mental health among nurses working for university hospitals and to reveal its related factors. The self-administered questionnaires were given to 1,486 nurses employed in 6 participating hospitals located in Daejeon City and Chungnam Province during the period from July 1st to Aug. 31st, 2006.
The questionnaire items included various characteristics such as sociodemographic, job-related, and psychosocial factors, with job stress factors(Job Content Questionnaire; JCQ) as independent variables and the index of mental health status(Psychosocial Well-being Index; PWI, Self-rating Depression Scale; SDS and Multidimensional Fatigue Scale; MFS) as dependent ones. For statistical analysis, Chi-square test was used for categorical variables, with multiple logistic regression and hierarchial multiple regression used for determining the factors having an effect on the level of mental health. The influence of psychosocial and job-related factors on the mental health status was assessed by the covariance structure analysis. The statistical significance was set at p<0.05 and the major findings of the study were as follows:
1. Concerning the level of PWI indicative of mental health of the subjects, 68.8% fell to the low-risk stress group and 31.2% to the high-risk group. For SDS showing level of depression, the normal group defined as having no symptoms was accounted for by 62.7%, and the group with depressive symptoms greater than mild degree, by 37.3%. For MFS reflecting the level of fatigue, the low-risk group was accounted for by 50.9%, and the high-risk group 49.1%.
2. For the odds ratio for the PWI, SDS and MFS as the indices of mental health status, and various factors, the groups who are unmarried, who reported that their sleep hours are not adequate, and whose subjective health status are reportedly not good were higher than their counterparts, respectively based on their sociodemographic characteristics. Concerning job-related characteristics, higher were found to be the groups with less years of career, those who worked in such places other than ward as operational room, ICU, emergency room, NICU etc, and those with sense of less satisfaction, and those with lower sense of aptitude for their job. In terms of job-related and psychosocial factors, higher were found to be the groups with higher level of job demand, those with lower level of job autonomy, those with lower level of support from supervisors or coworkers, and those with lower locus of control than their respective counterparts.
3. For correlations of such indices of mental health status as PWI, SDS and MFS with various studied items, all of these three indices were found to be in a positive correlation with the degree of job demand and type A behavior pattern, whereas in negative correlation with the autonomy of job, supervisors support, coworkers support, self-esteem, and locus of control.
4. The hierarchial multiple regression analysis was used to reveal the explanatory powers of factors influencing on the level of mental health. The level of mental health reflected in PWI, SDS and MFS was higher as the study groups were younger in age, unmarried, more inadequate in sleep hours, had fewer leisure time, had a lower level of subjective health status. As for job-related characteristics, they were higher as the degree of physical burden for work was higher, a sense of satisfaction about job was lower, and a level of aptitude for job was more inappropriate. For job stress factors, they were higher as the degree of job demand was higher, the autonomy of job was lower, and the coworker support was lower. Concerning psychosocial factors, they were higher as a sense of self-esteem was lower, locus of control was lower and the type A behavior pattern was greater. For the explanatory powers of all independent variables from the final model showed, that PWI was accounted for by 51.5%, SDS 48.6%, and MFS 24.9%, and all these three indices got more power by addition of psychosocial factors, being suggestive of its much influence.
5. With the analysis of covariance structure, the degree of recognition of psychosocial factors was more influential on the level of mental health status than job stress factors in such a manner as that the greater the recognition, while the lower the job stress factors, the higher the mental health status. Moreover, it was found to have the inter-relational effects that the greater the degree of recognition of psychosocial factors, the lower the job stress factors.
In conclusion, the factors of influence on the mental health status among subject nurses included sociodemographic characteristics such as age, sleep hours, leisure hours, and subjective health status, job-related characteristics such as job position, Sense of satisfaction in work, fit to the job, job stress factors such as the job demand, job autonomy, coworker support, and psychosocial factors such as self-esteem, locus of control and the type A behavior pattern, and specifically, showing the much greater impact of psychosocial factors on it. Analysis of covariance structure showed again that psychosocial factors decreased the job stress factors while increasing the degree of mental health status, and that the lower level of job stress factors increased the level of mental health status. Based on the study results, the enhancement of the level of mental health status among nurses would require development and application of programs to keep under management job stress factors or psychosocial factors as well as sociodemographic or job-related characteristics.