The relation between work-related stress factors and burnout in nurses at nursing homes for the elderly

Abstract

This study aims to identify work-related stress factors in nurses employed at nursing homes for the elderly and to clarify relationships between work-related stress factors and burnout. We conducted a questionnaire survey of 1,000 nurses employed at nursing homes for the elderly throughout Japan by mail. As a result, the following six factors were extracted as work-related stress factors：“quantitative and qualitative workload,” “communication with residents/families,” “interpersonal relations in the workplace,” “multidisciplinary cooperation,” “relationships with doctors,” and “difficulties in addressing situations.” Cronbach's coefficient α values ranged from 0.524 to 0.852, suggesting that results were reliable. Among work-related stress factors and burnout subscales, associations were noted between “quantitative and qualitative workload” and “emotional exhaustion” (odds ratio, 3.464), between “interpersonal relations in the workplace” and “emotional exhaustion” (odds ratio, 1.647) or “depersonalization” (odds ratio, 4.502), and between “communication with residents/families” and “personal accomplishment” (odds ratio, 1.573).

These results suggest that nurses employed at nursing homes for the elderly are at a high risk for burnout due to work-related stress. As these results may have been affected by the state of nursing home residents and workplace environments, methods of reducing work-related stress need to be investigated to prevent burnout in nurses at nursing homes for the elderly.