Intensity of nursing work in public hospitals

• Published in: Revista latino-americana de enfermagem Vol. 28; p. e3267
• Main Authors: Santos, Tatiane Araújo Dos, Santos, Handerson Silva, Sampaio, Elieusa E Silva, Melo, Cristina Maria Meira de, Souza, Ednir Assis, Pires, Cláudia Geovana da Silva
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Portuguese
• Published: Brazil Universidade de São Paulo-USP, Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto - USP 01.01.2020; Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto / Universidade de São Paulo; Universidade de São Paulo
• Subjects: Hospitals; Hospitals, Public; Licensed Practical Nurses; Medical-surgical nursing; Nurses; Nurses’ Aides; NURSING; Original; Public services; Work; Workloads; Enfermagem; Técnicos de Enfermagem; Enfermeiras e Enfermeiros; Auxiliares de Enfermagem; Hospitals, Public; Enfermeros; Licensed Practical Nurses; Nurses’ Aides; Trabalho; Nursing; Hospitais Públicos; Hospitales Públicos; Nurses; Enfermeros no Diplomados; Work; Enfermería; Auxiliares de Enfermería; Trabajo
• ISSN: 1518-8345; 0104-1169; 1518-8345
• DOI: 10.1590/1518-8345.3221.3267

to analyze the intensity of nursing work in public hospitals. cross-sectional, quantitative study, carried out in 22 public hospitals. The sample was composed of 265 nurses and 810 nursing technicians and assistants. Data were collected through a questionnaire and analyzed with Exploratory Factor Analysis. The calculation of the distribution of the work intensity by category was done using a score ranging from -1 to +1 standard deviation of the data. Fisher's exact test (0.05 <p≤0.10) was used to observe the significance between groups according to the employment bond. work intensity contributed to the explanation of precarization of work, with a value of 13% for nurses and 51.2% for technicians and assistants. For the technicians and assistants, the variables with the highest factor loadings were 'work requires more than she can do' (0.6696) and 'takes on multiple tasks due to staff shortages' (0.6156). Among nurses, the highest factor loadings were observed in the variables 'time pressure at work (0.6779) and 'Work pace' (0.6651). the variables analyzed indicate that work intensity occurs differently among nursing workers, and is revealed by the versatility, understaffing and flexibility of work.