Study regarding professional stress of medical staff in a Pharmacy

Company from Constanta, Romania

GEORGIANA ATODIRESEI-PAVALACHE

Faculty of Pharmacy

Ovidius University of Constanta

Mamaia 24th Street, Constanta

ROMANIA

CARMEN ELENA LUPU

Faculty of Pharmacy

Ovidius University of Constanta

Mamaia 24th Street, Constanta

ROMANIA

CARLA ALEXANDRA BRUTARU

Faculty of Dentistry

Ovidius University of Constanta

Mamaia 24th Street, Constanta

ROMANIA

Abstract: - Since burn-out is the second most common occupational disease after back pain in the European

Union, this study aims to analyze this multidimensional reaction that negatively influences the work of health

professionals worldwide. Scientific studies show that occupational burnout manifests itself much more

dramatically in the medical profession than in other professions, thus reflecting the phenomenon in all its

complexity.

In specialized literature, studies related to the evaluation of the degree of stress among medical personnel are

quite rare. This is one of the reasons for carrying out this study. The second reason is the need to highlight the

degree of stress in this professional category. The assessment, made on medical staff from common pharmacies

in Constanța County, Romania, consists of formulating a questionnaire that includes questions related to stress

factors that occur during professional activity. The answers received are interpreted and evaluated statistically.

Keywords: - burnout, exhaustion, diseases, pharmacies, stress, questionnaire

Received: July 11, 2022. Revised: October 18, 2023. Accepted: November 22, 2023. Published: December 11, 2023.

1 Introduction

Professional activity contributes to the

improvement of an individual's physical and

mental health as well as the general attitude

towards life. The presence of heightened tension

in work environments, which is often the result

of high psychological demand and limited

discretion in decision-making, can have

deleterious effects on health outcomes [1].

However, many people face stressful factors at

work and sometimes these are more intense than

the benefits brought by work [2]. Burnout has

detrimental consequences for health care

organizations, clinicians and the quality of care

that patients receive [3]. In the 21st century, in

most developed countries, the human force is

subject to a wide variety of changes and

demands, through which the psyche is assaulted

by different agents in multiple ways. However,

Burnout Syndrome has become a concern of

specialists in recent years, when the number of

antidepressant users has also increased by up to

50%. Stress can influence the general state and

International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

206

Volume 2, 2023

lead to the installation of non-specific defence

mechanisms. The first signs are headaches,

insomnia, dizziness, irritability, concentration

disorders, etc. [4]. As far as Romania’s concern

with work-related stress, things are still at a shy

beginning.

2 Methods

In a chain of community pharmacies in the

county of Constanța, Romania, the behaviour of

health professionals was studied according to the

degree of stress they are subjected to in their

professional environment. Thus, a total of 102

volunteers working in this pharmacy chain

answered some questions related to the

correlation between the degree of stress and

professional activity. The received answers were

statistically assessed.

The tailored questionnaire was delivered to 102

professionals from the medical field who work at

the same company, under the same professional

environment. The analysed community

pharmacy company is located in Constanta

County, Romania, an urban, congested area,

where the population is varied and consists of

both local residents and many people who are in

transit. This questionnaire includes the following

questions and the corresponding possible

answers:

Q1. What gender are you? i) female ii) male

Q2. In which area do you live? i) rural ii) urban

Q3. What age category do you belong to? i) 20-

25 years old ii) 26-30 years old iii) 31-35 years

old iv) 36-40 years old v) 41-50 years old vi)

over 50 years old

Q4. What is the last completed level of

education? i) High school ii) Post secondary

school iii) College, bachelor's level iv) Faculty,

master's level v) PHD

Q5. Which category of medical professional are

you part of? i) Practical student ii) Pharmacy

assistant iii) Pharmacist iv) Beauty advisor

Q6. How long have you worked in the medical

field? i) under 5 years ii) 5-10 years iii) 10-15

years iv) 15-20 years v) 20-25 years vi) more

than 25 years

Q7. What is the shift category you perform in the

pharmacy? i) day shifts of 6-8 hours ii) night

shifts iii) weekend/legal holiday shits

Q8. What are the main stress factors that

negatively influence your professional activity?

i) the duration of the working hours ii) reduced

number of free days iii) the diversity of the

activities carried out in the pharmacy iv) the

short deadlines for the achievement of the

objectives v) the feeling that work is not fairly

rewarded vi) interpersonal relationships

(conflicts and competition between colleagues)

vii) other

Q9. How do stress factors influence professional

activity? i) to a very large extent ii) to a great

extent iii) sufficient iv) to a small extent v) not at

all

Q10. What are the consequences of the stress you

feel at work? i) irritability and nervousness ii)

demotivation iii) physical tiredness iv) poor self-

confidence v) concentration difficulties vi) other

Q11. What are the elements that could reduce the

stress factors? i) the possibility of expressing the

opinion regarding the activities at the workplace

ii) avoiding tasks that seems unlogic iii)

establishing a flexible work schedule iv) creating

a work-rest balance in the workplace v) the

improvement of performance criteria vi) other

3 Results and discussion

International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

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Volume 2, 2023

The results of the questionnaire were quantified.

Most of the respondents are female and live in

the urban area, as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 The results in percentage of each

gender and rural/urban area

The percent score for each question (Q3 to Q11)

reported by the type of gender and the area where

the respondent lives, is presented in Tables 1 - 9.

Chi-square test performed and p-values less than

0.05 were statistically significant.

Table 1 The percent score for question Q3

reported on the type of gender

female

male

0.00%

0.483

3.03%

0.00%

iii

15.15%

0.00%

30.30%

0.00%

36.36%

75.00%

15.15%

25.00%

Table 2 The percent score for question Q4

reported on the type of gender

female

male

0.00%

0.251

15.15%

0.00%

iii

51.52%

25.00%

33.33%

75.00%

0.00%

Table 3 The percent score for question Q5

reported on the type of gender

female

male

0.00%

0.647

18.18%

0.00%

iii

81.82%

100.00%

0.00%

Table 4 The percent score for question Q6

reported on the type of gender

female

male

3.03%

25.00%

0.261

21.21%

0.00%

iii

24.24%

0.00%

33.33%

50.00%

9.09%

25.00%

9.09%

0.00%

Table 5 The percent score for question Q7

reported on the type of gender

female

male

90.91%

75.00%

0.406

6.06%

25.00%

iii

3.03%

0.00%

Table 6 The percent score for question Q8

reported on the type of gender

female

male

0.00%

0.737

15.15%

0.00%

iii

18.18%

25.00%

6.06%

0.00%

48.48%

50.00%

6.06%

25.00%

vii

6.06%

0.00%

Table 7 The percent score for question Q9

reported on the type of gender

female

male

33.33%

50.00%

0.715

51.52%

25.00%

iii

12.12%

25.00%

3.03%

0.00%

Table 8 The percent score for question Q10

reported on the type of gender

Q10

female

male

24.24%

25.00%

0.003

54.55%

25.00%

iii

18.18%

0.00%

3.03%

0.00%

50.00%

0.00%

Rural

Urban

0,00%

50,00%

100,00%

Female Male

100,00%

0,00%

88,89%

11,11%

International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

208

Volume 2, 2023

Table 9 The percent score for question Q11

reported on the type of gender

Q11

female

male

27.27%

25.00%

0.464

24.24%

25.00%

iii

3.03%

25.00%

15.15%

25.00%

15.15%

0.00%

From the total number of answers obtained, a

robot portrait of the health specialist working

professionally in a pharmacy in the city of

Constanta was created. It is characterized as

follows: it is a female person who lives in an

urban area, with an age between 40-50 years old,

with a higher education degree, specialization

pharmacist and with a working experience of

around 20 years, who has a work shift of 6-8

hours per day.

Most of the respondents blame insufficient

remuneration (44%) as the main stress factor,

followed by the multitude of activities that have

to be carried out in short intervals (20.6%), the

low number of free days (14.7%) or conflicts

with colleagues (8.8%) (Figure 2).

The majority say that their work is influenced by

these stressors to a large extent (50%), only 2.9%

of respondents are influenced to a small extent

by stressors. None of the respondents consider

stressors to be unimportant for their professional

activity. The presence of stressors in the

professional environment leads to demotivation

of staff (50%), but also to irritation and

nervousness (26.5%) or physical exhaustion

(14.7%) (Figure 3). The elements that could

reduce stressors in the professional environment

are in approximately equal proportions the

assignment of realistic tasks and the possibility

to express one's opinion at work (53%) or the

creation of a work-rest balance and the

improvement of performance criteria (30%).

Figure 2 Main stress factors that negatively

influence the professional activity depending on

age

Figure 3 Consequences of the stress depending

on age

Correspondence analysis (CA) was performed to

visualize the relationships between years worked

in the medical field, level of education and

professional stress of medical staff.

The main stress factor for respondents over 25

years of work is the reduced number of days off

and for those with less than 5 years of work the

main stress factor is the diversity of activities

carried out in the pharmacy. For those with less

than 15 years of experience, the stress factor felt

by most respondents is the feeling that work is

not sufficiently rewarded.

Most respondents consider demotivation as the

main consequence of stress.

The interviewed persons with over 25 years of

work believe that creating a work-rest balance in

the workplace could reduce the stress factors felt.

Those with less than 5 years of experience

believe that they do not have the opportunity to

express their opinions regarding workplace

activities (Figure 4).

International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

209

Volume 2, 2023

Figure 4 The first two dimensions of

correspondence analysis (CA) symmetric plot

for years worked in medical field (Q6) and main

stress factors (Q8), the consequences of the

stress (Q10) and the elements that could reduce

the stress factor (Q11)

All respondents with post-secondary education

consider that the main stressor is “a not fairly

rewarded work”. Those with master's degrees

consider the main stress factors to be

interpersonal relationships (conflicts and

competition between colleagues) and short

deadlines for meeting objectives.

Regarding demotivation, because of stress, there

was no significant difference between levels of

education groups.

For those with a bachelor's degree, the main

consequences are physical fatigue and poor self-

confidence, considering that creating a work-rest

balance at work is opportune (Figure 5).

Figure 5 The first two dimensions of

correspondence analysis (CA) symmetric plot

for level of education (Q4) and main stress

factors (Q8), the consequences of the stress

(Q10) and the elements that could reduce the

stress factor (Q11)

4 Conclusion

Stress factors are defining elements in nowadays

society, intervening even in the professional

environment, and reducing the concentration

capacity and efficiency of professionals. These

statistics are important for assessing the level of

stress at work and how stress affects employee

efficiency and mental-physical health.

Workplace support is important in buffering the

effect of role stress on burnout [5]. Employees in

the medical field have a great professional

responsibility and must have the ability to face

stressors and perform their tasks correctly.

We found that there are few such analyses in the

specialized literature and, therefore, we intend to

expand the research, by addressing the

questionnaire to other types of workers in the

medical field (hospital pharmacies, clinics,

dispensaries, hospitals, etc.).

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International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

210

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International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development

DOI: 10.37394/232029.2023.2.22

Georgiana Atodiresei-Pavalache,

Carmen Elena Lupu, Carla Alexandra Brutaru

E-ISSN: 2945-0454

211

Volume 2, 2023

Contribution of Individual Authors to the

Creation of a Scientific Article (Ghostwriting

Policy)

The authors equally contributed in the present

research, at all stages from the formulation of the

problem to the final findings and solution.

Sources of Funding for Research Presented in a

Scientific Article or Scientific Article Itself

No funding was received for conducting this study.

Conflict of Interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare

that are relevant to the content of this article.

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(Attribution 4.0 International, CC BY 4.0)

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