An Assessment of Stress amongst Nurses in Zaria Metropolis, Northwest Nigeria
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Date
2014
Authors
Anyebe, E.E.
Garba, S.N.
Ukut, C.I.
Lawal, H.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
West African College of Nursing
Abstract
Nursing is one of the most stressful occupations in the world. However, many nurses especially in Nigeria do not have an idea of how much stress they and how it affects their professional functioning. This study was undertaken to measure to the level of stress amongst nurses working at different tiers of hospital settings in Zaria, and to determine the sociodemographic attributes of the nurses in relation their level of stress. Two hundred and seventy-three (273) from three hospitals were selected through a combination of stratified and convenience methods from a Federal, State and a Faith-based hospital. The Kinzel’s Scale for measuring stress in Clinical Nurses was adopted for data collection and data were analysed using SPSS version 17. findings indicated that most (87.2%) nurses in Zaria are experiencing between high and extreme stress levels in their workplaces; levels that are theoretically incompatible with normal functioning. Manpower shortages and lack of equipment to carry out effective nursing care in government hospitals and poor inducements in faith-based health facilities appear to be the major stressors for nurses. Suggestions are made for urgent stress management interventions for nurses by all categories of health administrators, nurse leaders and educators to improve the quality of nursing care and to save nurses from the effects of high stress levels
Description
The paper showed that nurses work under very high levels of stress, which cannot be counterproductive and negatively affect the quality of care.
Keywords
Assessment, Nurses, Burnout, Kinzel’s Scale, Occupational Stress, Nursing Care
Citation
Anyebe, E.E., Garba, S.N., Ukut, C.I. and Lawal, H. (2014). An Assessment of Stress amongst Nurses in Zaria Metropolis, Northwest Nigeria. West African Journal of Nursing; 25(1); 53 – 70.