Shift work problems of healthcare workers at Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Iran, 2013

Background: Shift work can cause problems for workers’ health, especially nurses. This study was done to assess the problems caused by shift work and the nature of the job in nurses of the educational hospitals of Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive study carried out in 2013. The research participants were 159 nurses with and without shift work and 167 employees from one of the hospitals affiliated to Kerman University of Medical Sciences. Data were gathered via the survey of shift workers (SOS) questionnaire and were analyzed by SPSS software. Results: There were 41.1% (n = 134) shift working nurses, 7.7% (n = 25) fixed daytime nurses and 51.2% (n = 167) fixed daytime employees. Their average age was 35.7 ± 6.4, 34.0 ± 6.9 and 40.0 ± 6.8, respectively. This study showed that headache and dizziness (P = 0.001), lack of concentration (P = 0.011), boredom (P = 0.001), depression (P = 0.001), irritability (P = 0.001) and fatigue during the day (P = 0.026) were significantly higher among shift workers. Shift work significantly affected the personal (P = 0.029), family (P = 0.039) and social life (P = 0.001) of the shift working nurses, and also caused more musculoskeletal and psychosocial disorders. Conclusions: Shift work may cause musculoskeletal and psychological problems and have a negative impact on nurses’ personal, family and social life. Allowing nurses to choose shift work based on their own will, and the regular rotation of shifts can decrease the problems arising from shift work.