Stress and job satisfaction of clinical laboratory scientists.

Fifty-eight medical technologists currently working in laboratories in upper South Carolina hospitals were randomly selected and surveyed to determine job satisfaction and stress levels. Of the 27 (47%) technologists who reported job satisfaction, 3 (5%) were neutral and 29 (48%) were dissatisfied with their jobs; a total of 18 (31%) reported stressors checklist scores of 36 or more, which implies high stress levels. Since almost half (48%) of those surveyed reported job dissatisfaction, this study supported other studies showing that there is a high level of job dissatisfaction among clinical laboratory scientists. The chi-square probability distribution correlation of job stress and job satisfaction showed a significant relationship between the two within the profession. The results of this study indicate that management should implement strategies to increase the job satisfaction and decrease the job stress of clinical laboratory scientists.