Operating Room Nurses: A Deep Dive Into the Quality of Care and Job Stressors

The relationship between occupational stress and the quality of nursing care in the operating room (OR) is an area that has not been thoroughly explored in the literature. The present study was designed to examine the correlation between job-related stress and the quality of care delivered by nurses in the OR setting.

A cross-sectional survey was administered to OR nurses at our institution from 1 April to 30 April 2023. Participants were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire and several validated scales: the Good Perioperative Nursing Care Scale (GPNCS), the Operating Room Nurses' Job Stressor Scale (ORNJSS), the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and the Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS).

A total of 171 OR nurses participated. The mean score for nursing quality was 143.01 (SD 19.44), job stressors scored an average of 94.12 (SD 22.57), anxiety scores averaged 54.13 (SD 15.76), and depression scores averaged 59.41 (SD 15.03). A robust inverse correlation was identified between the nursing quality score and the job stressor score (r = -0.641). Furthermore, the nursing quality score exhibited significant negative correlations with both anxiety (r = -0.658) and depression (r = -0.626) scores.

The findings of this study demonstrate a substantial inverse correlation between the quality of perioperative nursing care and the intensity of occupational stressors, as well as the prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among OR nurses. It is imperative for hospital management to contemplate and implement interventions aimed at mitigating work-related stress and bolstering the psychological well-being of OR nursing staff.