WORK-RELATED STRESS, ETHICAL SENSITIVITY, AND ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION AMONG NURSING PROFESSIONALS IN PUEBLA, MEXICO

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: There is a high percentage of work-related stress among nursing professionals. This situation provokes psychological and physical symptoms that can impair attention and decrease ethical sensitivity when taking care of patients, which, in turn, can increase alcohol consumption. OBJECTIVE: To identify the correlation between work-related stress, ethical sensitivity, and alcohol consumption among nursing professionals. METHODOLOGY: A correlational design was used drawing from a population of 216 nursing professionals from a private hospital. Convenience sampling through a finite population formula was employed and a sample of 168 was formed. Nursing Stress Scale (NSS), Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire (MSQ), and AUDIT were also applied. RESULTS: Averages for work-related stress and ethical sensitivity were 33.95 and 66.34, respectively. 32.1% consumed alcohol within the last month and 17.9% weekly. Prudent alcohol consumption was more common. No relation was found between work-related stress, ethical sensitivity, and alcohol consumption (p > .05); however, there is some relation between the factors integrating them. Moral strength was negatively connected to work-related stress, as were work responsibilities to moral burden and moral strength (p <.05). Alcohol consumption was positively connected to experiences of death and suffering. CONCLUSION: Among nursing professionals, work-related stress factors reduce ethical sensitivity, and alcohol dependence is affected by death and suffering in the work setting.