Faculty of Health Studies, University of Mostar, Zrinskog Frankopana 34, 88000 Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Psychiatr Danub. 2021 Spring-Summer;33(Suppl 4):771-777.
Nursing is a profession frequently organized around shift work in order to guarantee the continuity of care throughout the 24 hours. However, working in shifts is coupled with the desynchronization of circadian rhythms and may result in adverse effects on nurses' health. Our previous work has demonstrated the presence of increased stress levels, reduced coping abilities and diminished life enjoyment in shift work nurses in comparison to those working only in accordance with the daily schedule. Here we aimed to appraise the effects of shift work on their overall health status.
We used a comparative cross-sectional approach on a sample of 157 hospital nursing professionals at the University Clinical Hospital Mostar. Study subjects were divided into two groups: a total of 51% study subjects were included in a specific type of shift work (i.e., 12-hour day shift / 24 hours off / 12-hour night shift / 48 hours off), while the remaining 49% adhered to the conventional 7-hour daily schedule. The instrument used was a Standard Shiftwork Index (SSI), together with a comprehensive appraisal of participants' socio-demographic characteristics. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods were applied, and statistical significance was set at p≤0.05 (two-sided).
The results have shown that nurses in shift work were significantly more burdened with gastrointestinal disturbances (p<0.001); more specifically, there was a higher frequency of appetite loss (p=0.003), heartburn (p=0.03), nausea (p<0.01) and weight gain (p=0.05) when compared to nursing professionals in the day shift. Conversely, there were no statistically significant differences in cardiovascular health between these two groups. In addition, nurses in shift work more frequently presented with headaches (p=0.001) and varicose veins of lower extremities (p=0.037) in comparison to nurses working only in accordance with the daily schedule.
Shift work can adversely influence psychophysical homeostasis, resulting not only in substandard performance of nursing staff, but also potentially hazardous effects on their overall health status. More specifically, we recognized shift work as a substantial risk factor for gastrointestinal and metabolic disorders in nurses; likewise, the increased prevalence of headaches may consequently have a detrimental effect on social and family relationships. All of this should be tackled in a holistic and organized way, together with any additional psychological/sleep issues.
护理是一项经常围绕轮班工作组织的职业，以确保 24 小时内护理的连续性。然而，轮班工作伴随着昼夜节律的不同步，可能会对护士的健康产生不利影响。我们之前的工作表明，与按照日常时间表工作的护士相比，轮班工作的护士压力水平升高、应对能力降低、生活乐趣减少。在这里，我们旨在评估轮班工作对其整体健康状况的影响。
我们采用了比较性的横断面研究方法，对莫斯塔尔大学临床医院的 157 名医院护理专业人员进行了研究。研究对象分为两组：共有 51%的研究对象被纳入特定类型的轮班工作（即 12 小时白班/24 小时休息/12 小时夜班/48 小时休息），而其余 49%的研究对象则按照常规的 7 小时每日工作时间表工作。使用的工具是标准轮班工作指数（SSI），并对参与者的社会人口统计学特征进行了全面评估。应用描述性和推断性统计方法，统计显著性设为 p≤0.05（双侧）。
结果表明，轮班工作的护士胃肠道紊乱明显更为严重（p<0.001）；更具体地说，食欲下降（p=0.003）、烧心（p=0.03）、恶心（p<0.01）和体重增加（p=0.05）的频率更高，与白班护士相比。相反，这两组之间的心血管健康没有统计学上的差异。此外，轮班工作的护士更频繁地出现头痛（p=0.001）和下肢静脉曲张（p=0.037），与仅按照日常时间表工作的护士相比。
轮班工作会对身心平衡产生不利影响，不仅会导致护理人员工作表现不佳，还可能对他们的整体健康状况产生潜在的危险影响。更具体地说，我们认识到轮班工作是护士胃肠道和代谢紊乱的一个重要危险因素；同样，头痛的高发率可能会对社会和家庭关系产生不利影响。所有这些都应该以一种整体和有组织的方式来解决，同时还要解决任何其他的心理/睡眠问题。
