# Burnout and sleep problems among nurses working in a tertiary hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal

## TL;DR

This study found high rates of burnout and poor sleep quality among nurses in a Nepali hospital, highlighting the need for interventions to improve their well-being.

## Contribution

The study provides new data on burnout and sleep issues among nurses in Nepal, where such information is scarce.

## Key findings

- 78.5% of nurses experienced burnout, with 88.3% disengaged and 83.0% exhausted.
- 58.9% of nurses had poor sleep quality.
- Junior-position nurses and those with daytime dysfunction were significantly more likely to experience burnout.

## Abstract

A growing number of professions are being affected by burnout but healthcare providers especially nurses are among the most affected. Due to the need to provide continuous medical care, nurses are a workforce that are obliged to engage in shift work causing sleep inadequacy and disturbance in regular sleep patterns in a working condition that is already physically and emotionally stressful. Burnout and sleep problems affects not just the well-being of nurses but also impacts their work efficiency resulting in reduced quality of care and safety of the patients. As there is very little existing information on this topic in Nepal, this study was conducted to determine the situation of burnout, sleep quality and, their correlates among nurses working in a tertiary hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal. This was a cross-sectional study in which quantitative method was applied. Data was collected from 246 nurses working in the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital using simple random sampling method between March and April, 2022. A self-administered questionnaire containing Oldenburg Burnout Inventory and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was used to collect data and the collected data was analyzed using SPSS 26. More than three out of four nurses (78.5%) were found to have burnout, while 88.3% were disengaged and 83.0% were exhausted. Likewise, more than half of the nurses (58.9%) were found to have a poor sleep quality. Using multivariate logistics regression analysis, factors like position of the nurse (AOR = 6.0, 95% CI; 1.9-18.8, p-vale = 0.002) and, slight problem (AOR = 6.6, 95% CI; 3.0-14.7, p-value<0.001) and somewhat to a big problem (AOR = 6.3, 95% CI; 1.9-20.9, p-value = 0.002) of daytime dysfunction were found to be significantly associated with burnout. These results indicate the necessity to reduce burnout and manage sleep problems of the nurses prioritizing the nursing staffs occupying junior position. Similarly, establishment of interventions like psychological help desk and support groups for the nurses could be beneficial to mitigate the effects of burnout and sleep problems among the nurses.

Manoj Panthi Kanak is a young public health worker passionate about working at the intersection of LGBTQIA+ rights and public health. In the past few years, Kanak has engaged in numerous projects related to research, evidence generation, advocacy and program implementation in the field of LGBTQIA+ health. Their work primarily focuses on mental health, HIV prevention, harm reduction, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and human rights advocacy for LGBTQIA+ community including other underrepresented and marginalized groups in Nepal. They have a Bachelor degree in Public Health from Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal. Kanak performed this study with the help of their college supervisor as a part of their undergraduate research project for Bachelor of Public Health with the aim to determine the situation of burnout, sleep quality and, their correlates among nurses working in Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Institute of Medicine, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal.