Comparison of fixed and rotating shifts on burnout among nurses working in public and private hospitals in Rasht

Background and Objective: Shift working is a social phenomenon today in which nearly 25 percent of the total workforce is engaged in industrialized societies. The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of fixed and rotating shifts on burnout among nurses working in hospitals.

Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of all public and private hospitals of the city of Rasht in 2011, of which a sample size of 120 subjects was chosen using multi-stage random sampling method and all participants responded to the Maslach and Jackson Burnout Inventory to measure burnout in them.

Results: Independent t-test analysis showed that the total burnout and emotional exhaustion subscale is greater in rotating shift nurses than fixed shift nurses (p < 0.05). Regarding the following two subscales (deforestation and lack of success), no significant difference was observed in these two groups. Also, female nurse’s burnout was significantly higher than male nurse’s burnout.

Conclusion: It can be said that rotating shifts due to changes in sleep-wake cycle by causing stress and creating a personal and family chronic problems increases burnout in people.