Occupational Stress, Strain, and Coping among Nursing Personnel: A Hospital-Based Cross-sectional Study

Abstract Background Nurses are the backbone of the health care system and the largest health care force in the world. They work in multidisciplinary areas in hospitals, nursing homes, government and private sectors, and research and development, which makes them the most stressful personnel in clinical areas. Objectives This paper aims to explore occupational stress, strain, and coping among nurses working in a hospital in Bengaluru. Methodology A nonexperimental hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2, 2022, to December 2, 2022, using a purposive sampling technique. A total of 77 nurses from different areas participated in the study. Data were collected by the researcher himself through the revised version of the Occupational Stress Inventory scale. Descriptive statistics were used with the mean, standard deviation, frequency, and percentage. To check the association, chi-square analysis was used. Results The research shows that the majority of the nurses had maladaptive stress in terms of role insufficiency, role ambiguity, role boundary, and physical environment (PE). It was observed that there was a high level of vocational strain (VS) and interpersonal strain with an average social support system (SS) among nurses. A significant association was found between gender and occupational role questionnaire (ORQ) factors like PE, designation of the nurse and ORQ in the area of responsibility, and PE of the working area. In the personal strain questionnaire factor, VS was significantly associated with gender. Furthermore, a significant association was also found between gender and personal resources questionnaire factors like self-care coping and SS coping skills. Conclusion Our data suggested a moderate to high level of occupational stress with less SS among nurses. Consequently, it is imperative for health care organizations to acknowledge the existence of occupational stress and collaborate toward devising a resolution, enabling nurses to provide patients with optimal care.