Operating theatre and medical ward nurses: two different ways of perceiving one's organizational health.

Abstract

Background: It is widely recognized that the working environment is crucial in the genesis of stress and other disorders that may affect nurses' health. The specific job context and the tasks performed by nurses in different clinical settings can be positive or negative predictors of organizational health.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe and compare organizational health among nurses working in operating theaters and medical wards.

Methods: For the study 670 nurses from six university hospitals in Italy were asked to participate and a total of 542 nurses constituted the final sample. The Nursing Organizational Health Questionnaire was used to collect the data and was administered from January to March 2010. A descriptive/comparative design was used.

Conclusions: The results showed that nurses assigned to medical wards perceived their working environment as healthy and were significantly more satisfied and had less psychosomatic complaints than their colleagues working in operating theaters.