The Relationship between Occupational Stress and Happiness of Midwives Who Work in the Hospitals and Health Centers of Mashhad, Iran, 2013

Stress is a common human experience that has significant implications on their health. Occupational stress particularly is an inability to cope and deal with the pressures of the jobs، and subsequently cause people lose their mental and physical balance. Happiness is a component of mental health which has opposite relationship with stress، so that the experience of stress reduces feelings of happiness and mental health is threatened. The aim of this study was determining the relationship between occupational stress and happiness in midwives who work in the hospitals and health centers of Mashhad، Iran. This descriptive-correlation study was conducted on 180 midwives who work in educational hospitals and health centers of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences، Mashhad، Iran in 2013. Sampling in the maternity was census and in the health centers was classified cluster. Data were collected with demographic and Happiness Oxford Questionnaire، and visual analog scale of occupational stress. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 19، descriptive statistics، Pearson correlation coefficient، Spearman correlation، Kruskal-Wallis and chi-square tests. P value less than 0. 05 was considered significant. The mean age of midwives work in health centers and maternity wards were 39. 63±6. 92 and 36. 50±9. 71، respectively (p=0. 014). Occupational stress among midwives in maternity ward (4. 14±1. 96) was higher than midwives in health centers (3. 70±1. 77) (p=0. 114). The mean score of happiness in midwives work in hospital was 123. 61±20. 00 and the mean score of happiness in midwives work in health centers was 125. 13±35. 19 (p=0. 604). Moderate and significant negative correlation was found between happiness and stress (r=-0. 479، p<0. 001). There was a negative and significant correlation between happiness and stress.