Occupational Stress of Hospital Workers

병원종사자의 직업성 스트레스에 관한 연구 - 서울시내 500병상 이상 병원종사자를 중심으로 -

The purpose of this thesis is to study theoretical access to the methods that have been used for the research of occupational stress, thereby providing management methods of occupational stress of hospital workers. With a stress model of hospital workers set up from the viewpoint of organization management, 929 sets of questionnaires were collected from intern doctors, resident doctors, nurses, nursing aides, pharmacists, medical technicians, workers in patient affairs(reception and medical insurance workers), administrators and clerks from the 8 hospitals in Seoul with more than 500 beds. Upon variance analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis of the collected questionnaires, this work examined how differences in stress caused by specific occupations and formulated a method of stress management for the hospital workers. The results are as follows. 1) If some duties of the nurses suffering from role-overloaded stress are transferred to the nursing aides dissatisfied with insufficient role, the two grunting groups can be satisfied at the same time. It is also necessary to transfer some jobs of the overloaded workers in patient affairs to the administrators, or the other way around. To reduce stress of conflict and ambiguity of role caused by the obscure division of roles between the workers, the role of each occupation should be delineated and the clear division of roles should be translated into action strictly according to that delineated. 2) Stress of inefficiency of organization from which the student doctors suffer can be relieved by management of participation. If they have access to the process of decision-making in general hospital affairs and consequently their understanding and the autonomy of job performance are promoted, such stress will be reduced. 3) To cope with stress of career development from which nurses, medical technicians, administrators, workers in patient affairs suffer, it is necessary to establish whether they have a chance to revive their careers, whether there are any ways of remotivation for less contributive workers, and whether they encourage each other to develope their careers. If they are given a chance to develope their careers, such stress will be relieved. 4) Pharmacists, suffering from stresses of living and personal relations, have strong cohesive power among themselves and organize a well-integrated team; thereby reducing the stress of personal relations and increasing productivity. 5) For administrators and student doctors confined to lesser social supports and for nurses and workers in patient affairs whose recognition of stress and job satisfaction are affected by social supports, emotional and informational supports for job performance help alleviate an individual's mental, and physical stress. 6) In addition to the above-mentioned stress-management methods, if an organizational coping strategy is provided according to the types of stress from the general viewpoint of the whole group of hospital workers, it would be of great help to managing stress. For example, the redesign of jobs, the management of objective, the improvement of working environment, the formation of an autonomous working group and various working plans can be set up for those who suffer from stress related to inappropriate role, while career counseling and development of career process can be provided for those dissatisfied with career development. Participation in the process of decision-making and the restructuring of the organization are needed for those who suffer from stress of malfunctioning organization, whereas creation of a supportive organizational atmosphere is desired for those who feel stressed due to personal relations. As well, such organizational coping strategies. as the increase of welfare facilities, seminars and educational programs and provision of health-promotion facilities can be provided.