An exploratory study of nursing tasks that induce physical and mental stress among hospital nurses

Background: Nursing tasks are major contributing factors of nurses' stress. Identifying these stress-inducing tasks by hospital and department is the first step in devising practical strategies to address this issue. Objectives: This study aimed to develop a nursing task list by categorizing nursing tasks and identifying the ones that induced physical and mental stress among hospital nurses. Methods: This descriptive exploratory study was conducted. In the first phase, the nursing task list was formulated based on a literature review and an expert content validity verification. In the second phase, the stress-inducing (both physical and mental) nursing tasks in different departments at two types of hospitals were investigated from 775 nurses. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, χ² test and ANOVA performed using SPSS/WIN 26.0. Results: The nursing task of “exercise and position change” was identified to cause the highest physical stress across all five departments in both advanced general hospitals and general hospitals. Similarly, the nursing task “explanation of patients' condition upon request from the patients' family members” induced the greatest mental stress in both advanced general hospitals and general hospitals. Finally, “substitution for physicians: prescription” was identified as the greatest mental stress-inducing nursing task in general hospitals. Conclusion: Based on a nursing task list developed, we determined which nursing tasks induce physical and mental stress in different departments at two types of hospitals. This foundational work will be crucial for exploring practical strategies to relieve nurses' stress.