Burnout and job satisfaction in surgical nurses and other ward nurses in a tertiary hospital: A comparative study in Turkey

Aim: Job dissatisfaction and burnout have a negative effect on health care providers, especially nurses. This often results in a shortage of qualified personnel as well as a decrease in the quality and level of care provided to patients. This study carried out to describe the level of burnout and job satisfaction among surgical nurses and to compare them to nurses working in other wards in terms of these aspects. Methods: The study was designed as a cross-sectional and descriptive survey. The sample of the research consisted of 330 nurses working in a tertiary hospital in the northeastern part of Turkey. A questionnaire form, Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire and Maslach Burnout Inventory were used in order to collect the data. The student t test in independent variables, ANOVA, and Pearson's Correlation Coefficient were used in order to analyze the data. Results: Study results indicated that surgical nurses experienced emotional exhaustion more than pediatric nurses. They had higher levels of depersonalization than the policlinic and gynecological nurses. It was also found that nurses working in operating rooms and urology units experienced more emotional exhaustion than other surgical nurses. Conclusion: The study results showed that the state of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization of the surgical nurses was higher than the means of nurses working in other wards and job satisfaction and personal accomplisment were similar.