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Working conditions and occupational stress among nurses in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional pilot study

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A Correction to this article was published on 04 March 2021

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Abstract

Background

Occupational stress is common among nurses and is thought to be one of the key factors for the global shortages of nurses. To the best of our knowledge, no study has been done to assess occupational stress among Bangladeshi nurses. This study aimed to investigate the association of sociodemographic characteristics and occupational characteristics with stress experienced by nurses working in a specialized hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was employed involving 155 nurses working in the National Institute of Cardiovascular Disease (NICVD). Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire with the Bengali version of the Occupational Stress Index (OSI). Both univariate (Student t-test or ANOVA) and multivariate analyses (linear regression) were performed to identify the sociodemographic and work-related factors associated with occupational stress.

Results

The average score on the OSI was 147.1 – moderate level of occupational stress among nurses. The OSI score was higher in males (150.25) than in females (143.94). Nurses who were aged >40 years, and single, had nursing experience between 10 and 20 years and were considering promotion tended to suffer more stress than their peers. Findings from linear regression showed that the OSI score was significantly (p < 0.001) associated with the work conditions: role overload, role ambiguity, role conflict, responsibility, support from colleagues and rational coping.

Conclusion

The findings indicated the importance of occupational characteristics in relation to occupational stress among nurses. Further results of this study can be utilized by researchers and policymakers to guide preventative measures to reduce occupational stress among nurses.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge Executive Management Board and Nursing Staff at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Disease (NICVD) hospital for their assistance in carrying out this pilot study. Also, the authors’ would like to acknowledge Dr. Barbara Harmes for proofreading the manuscript before submission.

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or non-profit sectors.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Maternal and Child Health Division, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Md Irteja Islam

  2. Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Australia

    Md Irteja Islam, Enamul Kabir & Rasheda Khanam

  3. School of Commerce, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Australia

    Md Irteja Islam, Syed Afroz Keramat & Rasheda Khanam

  4. Department of Occupation and Environmenal Health, Naitonal Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Kh Md Watin Alam & Manjurul Haque Khan

  5. Child Health Research Foundation, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Kh Md Watin Alam

  6. Handicap International – Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Munzur E. Murshid

  7. American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB), Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Rezwanul Haque

  8. School of Sciences, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Australia

    Enamul Kabir

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  1. Md Irteja Islam
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Contributions

MII, KMWA and MHK contributed to the study conception and design. KMWA and MHK performed material preparation and data collection. MII and KHWA performed data analyses. MII wrote the first draft and finalized the draft of the manuscript with support from SAK, MEM and RH. EK, RK and MHK supported in the interpretation of data and critically reviewed the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript before submission.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Md Irteja Islam.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

Ethical approval was obtained from the research ethics committee of the National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM). The procedures used in this study adhere to the code of the Declaration of Helsinki.

Informed consent

Each study participant provided written informed consent. Detailed study related information, such as objectives, methods, and data confidentiality procedure, was provided via a printed handout. Privacy and confidentiality of the respondents during data collection were maintained strictly.

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Islam, M.I., Alam, K.M.W., Keramat, S.A. et al. Working conditions and occupational stress among nurses in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional pilot study. J Public Health (Berl.) 30, 2211–2219 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-020-01415-8

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