Stressors in the workplace: community health nurses

A survey questionnaire based on seven categories of stressors was completed by 67 community health nurses from three community health nursing agencies. Responses identified major sources of stress as factors associated with quantitative work overload, uncooperative family members and clients, unfamiliarity with situations, inability to reach physicians, and personal situations. These findings were corroborated by the nurses' responses to open-ended questions. The intensity of stressors was significantly different by age group in that older nurses experienced less stress. The findings of this study have implications for management of patients, organization of workloads, and policy decisions in community health nursing practice.