Assessment of Workplace Burden on Nursing Staff Well-being at Intensive Care Unit

Abd, Rawaa Kamel; Raman, Vinoth

doi:10.33091/amj.2025.159806.2228

	Assessment of Workplace Burden on Nursing Staff Well-being at Intensive Care Unit
Al- Anbar Medical Journal
Volume 21, Issue 4, October 2025, Pages 269-275 PDF (371.48 K)
Document Type: Original articles
DOI: 10.33091/amj.2025.159806.2228
Authors
Rawaa Kamel Abd^* ¹; Vinoth Raman²
¹Department of Community Health Nursing, College of Nursing, University of Thi Qar, Al-Nasiriyah, Iraq
²Deanship of Quality and Academic Accreditation, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Fisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
Background: In recent years, employee well-being has emerged as a critical factor influencing workplace efficiency and productivity. Physically and mentally healthy employees tend to be more productive and are better equipped to provide high-quality services. Objective: To evaluate the impact of workplace burden on the health of nursing professionals working in intensive care units (ICUs). Method: This research was conducted in four hospitals in Al-Nasiriyah city, southern Iraq, from October 2024 to January 2025 using a cross-sectional study design. The study population consisted of 127 ICU nurses currently employed at the selected hospitals. A purposive sampling technique was employed. Data were collected using the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) questionnaire. Results: Out of 127 nurses, 70 were male (55.1%), with the majority aged 39-49 years (33.9%). Approximately 33.1% reported experiencing frequent physical health impacts from their workplace, and 48% reported regular psychological effects. Factor analysis showed strong symptom loadings (extraction values > 0.600) across physical (e.g., fatigue, back pain) and psychological (e.g., panic, low self-worth) domains (P-value = 0.001). Age and education level significantly predicted physical burden (P-values = 0.001 and 0.018, respectively), while sex, experience, and patient loss were not (P-value > 0.05). Age was the only significant predictor of psychological burden (P-value = 0.001). Conclusion: The findings underscore the significant challenges faced by ICU nurses, including physical strain, emotional exhaustion, and burnout, all of which can profoundly affect their overall health and well-being. Addressing these issues requires a comprehensive approach that integrates both individual-level and organizational-level interventions.
Keywords
Health; Physical Burden; Well- being; Psychological Burden; Intensive care unit

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