CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Every work environment, particularly in a hospital setting, must be accommodating, friendly, and stress-free in order to promote quality care and the well-being of health-care employees whose workload is growing by the day. This is due to technological advancements and patient demand for quality in reaction to rising health-care costs. Stress is regarded as a normal component of life that is required on occasion as a boost to functional capacity, but when it is experienced for an extended period of time, it is harmful to one’s health and productivity (Salleh, M.R., 2008).
Stress is defined as a specific relationship between a person and his or her environment that the person perceives as taxing or exceeding his or her resources.
Stress was seen as an industrial hazard and occupational stress was cited as a significant health problem as early as the mid-1950s (Jennings, B.M., 2009) Patient care, decision-making, taking responsibility, and change were identified as sources of anxiety among nurses in the 1960s, predisposing them to work stress (Menzies, 1960). Because of the physical labor, human suffering, work hours, staffing, and interpersonal interactions that are important to what nurses do, the nurse’s role has traditionally been seen as stressful (Lukpata, F. E. et al., 2013).
Nursing’s stressful nature can eventually lead to job dissatisfaction and burnout (Arafa, M.A., 2003). This statement is in accordance with some studies that find that providing health care services takes both physical and mental effort.
Nurses work tirelessly to provide care to critically and chronically ill patients who are on the verge of death in an environment where there is no room for error (Rowe, J., 2003). All of this can put intense psychological and physical strain on the health care provider, resulting in stress or burnout syndrome (Rowe, J., 2003).
Nurses have been found to be the most susceptible to burnout among health-care workers (Abushaikha, L. and Saca-Hazboun, H., 2009). Nurses are expected to provide humane, sympathetic, culturally sensitive, competent, and moral care in working situations with limited resources, a shortage of nurses, and increased duties. Such an imbalance between providing high-quality treatment in a resource-constrained environment causes stress (Khamisa, N., 2015).
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Job satisfaction and burnout among health-care workers are significant issues because they influence turnover, staff retention, and, ultimately, patient care quality (Atencio, 2003). “A syndrome of physical and emotional tiredness, involving the development of stress, which can lead to the formation of a poor self-concept, unfavorable job attitudes, and loss of concern for clients,” according to the definition. Burnout has also been linked to high turnover, excessive absenteeism, bad work attitudes, low morale, and a decreased willingness to help others (Abushaikha, L. and Saca-Hazboun, H., 2009).
The amount of stress a person feels and how near they are to burnout are determined by how they see and process stress.
An individual may be exposed to a small number of stressors but be unable to process the stress effectively, resulting in burnout. Another person, on the other hand, may be exposed to a large number of stresses but manage to process each one effectively and avoid burnout. Individual differences play a large role in how near a person is to burnout (Truby, B., 2009)
Stress is determined by the balance between perceived demands from the environment and the individual’s resources to meet those demands, according to psychological theories (Ursin, H. and Eriksen, H.R., 2004)
Nurses, doctors, and laboratory technicians, according to the International Council of Nurses (ICN), endure the most job-related stress, with 45 percent indicating that their occupations are quite or extremely difficult.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The overall goal of this research is to look into the impact of stress on work behavior among nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta. The following are the precise goals:
1. To find out what causes work stress in nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta.
2. To find out if there is a link between stress and work unhappiness among nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta.
3. To investigate the impact of nurse stress on patient safety at Federal Medical Centre Abeokuta.
4. To look at the effect of lengthy working hours on Nurses’ job performance at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta.
5. To determine whether work stress has an impact on unfavorable job attitudes among nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following are the pertinent research questions for this study:
1. What causes work stress among nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta?
2. What is the link between stress and work discontent among Federal Medical Centre Abeokuta nurses?
3. What impact does nursing stress have on patient safety at Federal Medical Centre Abeokuta?
4. What effect does excessive working hours have on Nurses’ job performance at the Federal Medical Centre Abeokuta?
5. Is there a link between work stress and bad job attitudes among nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta?
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This study is critical for medical directors since it identifies some of the elements that contribute to nurses’ poor performance in hospitals. The link between stress and job behavior in nurses has been studied extensively. Long work hours are one of the leading causes of work stress among nurses, and their effects on productivity have been well studied.
This study also looks into measures to reduce work stress among hospital nurses. If these steps are applied, they will have an influence on patient safety. Nurses that are stressed are more harsh with patients, which has an impact on their recovery.
The findings of this study can potentially be used as a source of information for other studies.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The goal of this study was to see how stress affected nurses’ work behavior at the federal medical center in Abeokuta.
LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
Lack of time, respondent unwillingness to provide information, and restricted resources were among the key challenges the researchers faced in conducting this study.
DEFINITION OF TERMS
Stress is a mental or emotional condition of strain or tension brought on by difficult or demanding situations.
Leave a Comment