Prevalence, Severity Distribution, and Sociodemographic Determinants of Occupational Stress Among Nurses in Tertiary Care in Delta State, Nigeria

Background: Occupational stress is a recognised health problem in nursing and a recurring threat to patient safety. Although its epidemiology has been mapped in several countries, population-level data covering the full tertiary nursing workforce of a Nigerian state remain limited, which constrains targeted workforce planning.

Aim: To determine the prevalence and severity distribution of occupational stress among nurses in tertiary hospitals in Delta State, Nigeria, and to examine the influence of age, gender, years of clinical experience, and marital status on stress levels.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among 259 registered nurses drawn from the two tertiary hospitals in Delta State, the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba, and the Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara, using a stratified sampling technique. Occupational stress was measured with the 50-item Expanded Nursing Stress Scale (ENSS). Sociodemographic determinants were tested with Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney U tests at p < .05.

Results: About two-thirds of participants (65.4%) reported occupational stress at a moderate or severe level, comprising 32.5% moderately stressed and 32.9% severely stressed, with a further 24.2% slightly stressed. Age significantly influenced stress (H = 16.684, p = .001), with nurses aged 21–30 years recording the highest mean rank (148.42). Years of experience was also significant (H = 8.002, p = .020), with nurses of fewer than ten years most stressed (mean rank 142.59). Neither gender (U = 5845.00, p = .10) nor marital status (H = 3.833, p = .28) was significant.

Conclusion: Occupational stress affected most nurses in this tertiary care setting, and its burden fell most heavily on young and early-career nurses. The findings support workforce planning and targeted support interpreted through the job demands–resources framework.

Keywords: Occupational stress, prevalence, severity, nurses, tertiary hospitals, sociodemographic determinants, Delta State, Nigeria