[A study of work stress and professional commitment in outpatient department nurses].
BACKGROUND
Nurses working in outpatient departments face tremendous pressure from multiple sources. The effect of nurse professional commitment on continued professional development is an issue worth exploring further.


OBJECTIVE
This study explored relationships among nurses' personal attributes, work stress and professional commitment.


METHODS
The Lazarus cognitive appraisal model framed the research plan design. Tools used included stress level and professional commitment scales for healthcare professionals. Of 180 questionnaires sent to outpatient department nurses nurses, 171 (95%) were returned and used in analysis. SPSS 12.0 for windows software was used for statistical analysis.


RESULTS
We found a significant negative correlation between work stress and professional commitment and no significant relationship between level of education and either ability to handle work stress or professional commitment. Years of work experience, age and position all correlated positively with ability to handle work stress. Years of work experience correlated positively with professional commitment.


CONCLUSIONS



CONCLUSIONS
This study suggests that nurses experience the highest work stress levels during their first five years of work. Findings show that providing nurses a clear career development path, in addition to attractive incentives and a reasonable workload, is essential to reducing work stress, bolstering professional commitment and increasing retention.
Department of Nursing, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Republic of China.
Ming-Hsiu
MH
Tsai
Meng-Fen
MF
Liu
Yu-Ju
YJ
Chen
Cheng-Ching
CC
Liu
D000328:Adult; D002055:Burnout, Professional / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009726:Nurses; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital; D010558:Personnel Loyalty; D013312:Stress, Physiological; D013315:Stress, Psychological