An investigation on occupational stress of the operating room staffs in hospitals affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and its association with some factors

BACKGROUND: Stress is a nonspecific reaction to everything the body needs. Although occupational stress exists in every occupation, it is seen with more frequency and intensity amongst those occupations related to human health. In this study, we aimed to investigate the level of occupational stress in operating room staffs working in the hospitals affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and its association with some factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a descriptive co-relational study conducted in summer 2010. The population studied comprised 100 OP staffs working in hospitals affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. The data were collected by a questionnaire including two sections of personal information and Toft-Anderson Standard occupational stress inventory. The first section contained 13 questions and the second included 34 questions on stressful factors, measured through Likert's scale in which the scores of 0-33 indicated mild stress, 34-66 indicated moderate stress, and 67-100 indicated acute stress. The data were analyzed through SPSS. The statistical tests of Pearson correlation, variance analysis, and independent t-test were employed to analyze the data (P < 0 0.05 was considered significant). RESULTS: Based on the findings, mean score of staffs’ stress (out of 100) was 32.3 (12.9) and was in the range of 1-65. The highest frequencies were for mild stress (57.4%) and moderate stress (42.6). In addition, mean score of stress was not the same in different domains. There was a significant inverse association between the score of stress and monthly working hours (r = -0.21, P = 0.049). Mean score of stress was 28.1 (12.3) among those with average income and 33.8 (12.8) for the low-income subjects, showing a significant difference (P = 0.048). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The present study showed that most of the subjects suffer from mild stress. Since the highest level of stress was for work overload, it is suggested to reduce the staffs’ work overload by employing capable and knowledgeable work force and enhancing their scientific and practical abilities.