Physiological and behavioural response patterns at work among hospital nurses

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chen J ; Daraiseh NM ; Davis, Kermit G. ; Davis LS ; Pan W
• Description:
  AIM: The aim was to determine whether hospital nurses are experiencing physiological strain at work by examining their physiological and behavioural response patterns over 12-hour shifts. BACKGROUND: Excessive workload for nurses may lead to poor quality of care and high nursing turnover rates. Energy expenditure (EE), heart rate (HR) and work pace (WP) can be used to examine the physiological impact from the workload. METHODS: A total of 145 nurses wore monitors for one 12-hour day shift to record HR and WP, which were used to calculate EE. Individual and work-related factors were assessed through questionnaires and work logs. RESULTS: Energy expenditure accumulated over the 12 hours reached the EE level of 8-hour shifts in which individuals work at a moderate physical intensity level. The HR data indicated a moderate cardiac stress level throughout the shifts, despite which WP decreased after 15.00 hours. Inadequate work break and sleep, family care-giving responsibility and aging may challenge work recovery. CONCLUSIONS: Nursing workload of 12-hour shifts has a negative physiological impact on hospital nurses. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Nurse managers need to be aware of the physiological strain experienced by staff nurses, and focus on ensuring sufficient breaks and proper work accommodations for older nurses. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Behavior Cardiovascular System Energy Metabolism Health Personnel Occupational Health Safety Shift Work Schedule Stress, Psychological Surveys And Questionnaires Workload Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Age-factors Author Keywords: Energy Expenditure Behavior-patterns Energy-metabolism Health-care-personnel Heart-rate Heart Rate Job-analysis Job-stress Management-personnel Nurses Nursing Workload Physiological-response Questionnaires Rest-periods Shift-work Shift Work Work-analysis Work-capacity Work-environment Work-intervals Work-performance Worker-health Work Pace Workplace-studies

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• ISSN:
  0966-0429
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Illinois ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  57-68
• Volume:
  19
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20038744
• Citation:
  J Nurs Manag 2011 Jan; 19(1):57-68
• Contact Point Address:
  Jie Chen, 1240 Normal Road, DeKalb, IL 60115-2864 USA
• Email:
  jchen2@niu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Nursing Management
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d22a3b7db53411a1919fee1677b6d1cbb45ae354e0f20e3c256636b3b775c9aab54b2499d68c9dfcafbce75703adbc21929e1b1f58775f97f46b3963c193881f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/192351/cdc_192351_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 170.15 KB ]