International Journal of Medicine and Health Development (Jan 2007)
A questionnaire survey on the level of occupational stress among dental practitioners in Eastern Nigeria
Abstract
Background: Dental practitioners experience high levels of stress within their working lives, which may be associated with significant distress that could affect patients' treatment outcome. The aim of this study was to undertake a questionnaire-based survey to establish the level of occupational stress among dental professionals in eastern Nigeria. Subjects and methods: A total of 62 questionnaires were randomly distributed to practicing dental surgeon in eastern Nigeria. The information collected included: years of practical experience; causes of stress during clinical practice; signs of onset of stress; reactions of individual practitioner during stress condition; and patient's management during practitioner's stressful moment. Fifty-seven were returned anonymously representing 92% response rate, which were used in the data analysis Results: All the 57 respondents agreed they have been under stress occasionally during practice. Forty-one (72%) indicated patients' management while 43 (75.4%) indicated the type of clinical procedures as the main causes of their stress. Twenty-three (40.4%) respondents were of the opinion that staff and practice management were the main cause of their stress. Twenty-seven (47.4%) and 28 (49.1%) were affected by time pressure and environmental factor respectively. All the respondents were of the opinion that more years of practice has reduction effect and better management of stress during clinical practice. Conclusion: The findings of this research confirm that dental surgeons appreciate the co-existence of stress in dental practice and every practitioner is affected. Surgeons should be able to identify their own stress adaptation methods to provide an efficient and effective way to proper patients' management and job satisfaction. This paper will hopefully stimulate dental surgeons to consider further research in areas of stress management during clinical practice.
