THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS AND INTENTION TO LEAVE THE PROFESSION AMONG PERIOPERATIVE AND ANESTHESIA NURSES

Because of the occupational nature of the operating room personnel, they are exposed to various occupational hazards that can cause them to leave their profession and reluctant to continue working, which has a significant impact on the effectiveness of health systems. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between occupational hazards and intention to leave the profession among perioperative and anesthesia nurses.

This descriptive correlational study was conducted in operating rooms of hospitals of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2019. Research population included 250 Perioperative and anesthesia nurses selected via stratified random sampling. Data were collected using demographic characteristics questionnaire, a researcher-made occupational hazards questionnaire, and an anticipated turnover scale. The data were analyzed using SPSS16 software.

Based on the study findings, the mean score of occupational hazards in the studied nurses was 62.7±11.8 (moderate level) and the mean score of the intention to leave the profession was 34.7±5.28 (moderate level). Among the dimensions of occupational hazards, ergonomic hazards (22.9±6.9) and chemical hazards (10.2±4.6) were recognized as the most important and insignificant sources of occupational injuries, respectively. There was a positive and significant correlation between ergonomic (r=0.185, p=0.03) and biological hazards (r=0.160, p=0.045) with the intention to leave the profession.

According to the findings, managers must adopt appropriate strategies and policies to reduce occupational hazards and intention to leave the profession among operating room staff.