Exploring the relationship between physical activity level and work-related demographic factors among emergency and outpatient nurses: a cross-sectional correlational study

Background Physical activity plays an important role in maintaining the health and performance of nurses, especially those working in outpatient room (OR) and emergency room (ER) that has a high workload. However, data on the level of physical activity and its influencing factors among these nurses is unclear. Purpose This study aimed to determine and compare the physical activity levels of ER and OR nurses and the relationship between physical activity levels and work-related demographic factors (age, length of work, unit room/department, gender, and career level). Patients and methods Our study used a correlational design with 117 nurses (57 ER and 60 OR nurses). This study used the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) as the instrument. Data were analyzed with the Spearman test. Results A total of 117 nurses completed the survey. Most participants reported high physical activity level ( n = 77, 65.8%), low ( n = 24, 20.5%) and moderate ( n = 16, 13,7%). Furthermore, the study found a significant weak positive correlation between physical activity with age ( r = 0.25, p = 0.006) and length of work ( r = 0.24, p = 0.010). But no significant correlation were found with gender, career level and unit room ( p > 0.05). Conclusion The findings suggest that age and length of work are significantly associated with physical activity levels among emergency and outpatient nurses. These results highlight the need for age- and experience-specific strategies to encourage and maintain physical activity in the nursing workforce.