Association between night shift work and mental and physical health among Chinese nurses: A cross-sectional study

The prevalence of night shifts is extensive in hospital settings, particularly among nursing staff. The increasing importance of night shift work in meeting the demands of modern social care services underscores the urgent need for research into the impact of these schedules on nurses' health. This study aimed to examine the relationship between night shifts and the physical and mental well-being of nurses. Data were collected through questionnaires to obtain general demographic information and responses to the Chinese Psychosomatic Health Scale (CPSHS). The data were initially entered into Excel 2018 for verification of accuracy before being analyzed using IBM SPSS 26.0 software. The findings indicated that nurses engaged in night shift work exhibited a higher susceptibility to symptoms associated with the digestive system, reproductive endocrine system, depression, and anxiety compared to their day shift counterparts. Furthermore, a significant correlation was observed between the frequency of night shifts and increased symptom scores for digestive issues and depression. Specifically, nurses who engaged in night shifts exceeding eight instances per month demonstrated significantly higher scores in comparison to those working night shifts between five to eight times per month or fewer than four times per month. A prominent finding from the data analysis revealed that nurses undertaking night shifts more than eight times monthly exhibited a markedly higher incidence of somatic symptom disorder. The study implies that the engagement in night shift work is correlated with the physical and mental health of nurses, with the frequency of night shifts exceeding eight times per month identified as a risk factor for physical disorders among this population.