Abstract
Background: The mental health of nurses is of the most importance as it significantly affects their personal and professional performance and therefore the quality of care provided to patients. Demanding nature of their occupation puts them at greater risk of developing negative emotional states. The incidence of mental health problems among health professionals is higher than in the general population.
Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the expression of negative emotional states (depression, anxiety and stress) in nurses, as well as the impact of sociodemographic and job-related variables on the expression of emotional states.
Methods: The study was conducted at the Sestre milosrdnice Universitiy Hospital Center. The study involved 254 participants. Anonymous survey questionnaire, created solely for the purposes of this research, and validated Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale -DASS-21 were used as research instruments.
Results: The majority of participants did not show symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress, while most of participants with present symptoms showed mild to moderate symptoms. A serious and extremely serious level of symptoms was rare. The incidence of symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress were 30.2%, 34.9% and 30.8%. There was a significant difference in the presence of anxiety and stress symptoms in regard to the clinic in which the participants work, and in the presence of anxiety symptoms in regard to the workplace. The most anxiety and stress symptoms were reported by participants that work in cardiology, surgery, and hospital emergency department, and the most-anxious workplace was the operating room. No significant difference was found in regard to gender, age, educational level, years of service and working hours of the participants.
Conclusion: Although the majority of participants does not show any symptoms, the incidence of depression, anxiety, and stress that is present in more than a quarter of respondents is relatively high. The study found that some workplaces expose nurses to more stressful situations. Therefore, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of maintaining mental health of nurses.