Subjective symptoms among female hospital nurses in Korea

초록

Aim: To investigate the prevalence, distribution, and correlates of subjective symptoms among a cross-sectional sample of female hospital nurses in Korea. Methods: A self-reporting survey was administered to a cross-sectional sample of 337 nurses from a Korean teaching hospital. This survey focused on subjective symptoms, physiological workplace factors, and psychosocial issues. Correlations between subjective symptoms and demographic or workplace items were evaluated using a multiple logistic regression model. Results: Acceptable questionnaires were received by 2 99 of the 337 nurses (88.7%). The prevalence of subjective symptoms varied,with depression reported as: never (24.5%), sometimes (73.2%), and always (2.3%). Dysmenorrhoea was reported as: never (18.7%), sometimes (46.8%), and always (34.5%). Premenstrual tension was reported as: never affected (22.1%), sometimes affected (43.8%), and always affected (34.1%). Logistic regression analysis indicated that nurses who had children were only one-fifth as likely to report dysmenorrhoea as those without children (odds ratio, 0.2; 95% confidence interval, 0.05-0.7; p = 0.0138). A similar relationship was also demonstrated for premenstrual tension (odds ratio, 0.2; 95% confidence interval, 0.05-0.7;p = 0.0158). Conclusions: The results suggest that subjective symptoms constitute an important source of occupational morbidity for Korean nurses. Further interventional studies need to be undertaken to effectively target the resources for this specific Asian popullation. © 2006 Scientific Communications International Limited.

키워드