The impact of chronotype on physical health, psychological health, and job performance among health care providers in acute care settings

ABSTRACT

Background

Chronotype represents individual preferences to work specific shifts. Few researchers have examined the impact of chronotype on critical care (CC) nurses’ physical and psychological health as well as performance in the workplace.

Aim

to investigate the impact of specific chronotypes on the physiological and psychological health of CC nurses as well as their performance in the workplace.

Methods

A descriptive cross-sectional design was used to conduct the study. Data were collected using three instruments: the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire, the Standard Shiftwork Index (SSI), and the Six Dimension Scale of Nursing Performance (Six-D Scale). A convenient sample of 101 nurses working in critical care units at two hospitals in Jordan was recruited.

Results

Results showed that the trend of nurses to the chronotypes compatibility less than those who did not show their compatibility (45.5%). Results also indicated weak negative associations between chronotype and gastrointestinal health and cardiovascular health, respectively (r = −.108; r = −.020). There was a weak positive association between chronotype and psychological health (r = .000). Regarding work performance, negative significant correlations between chronotype and the two domains of work performance (i.e. frequency [P = .01] and quality of nursing activity [P = .05]) were discovered.

Conclusion

Chronotype is typically induced by the shiftwork system, so it may be more appropriate to plan work requirements and daily activities based on chronotype to avoid the consequences of health disruptions.

KEYWORDS:

• Chronotype
• circadian misalignment
• shiftwork
• physiological health and psychological health
• performance

Disclosure statement

Contributors: OR: Conceptualization of the idea, Data Collection, Data analysis, Writing the manuscript. Wk: Conceptualization of the idea, Writing the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Funding: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Conflict of interest: No conflict of interest has been declared by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Omar Faisal Al-Rfooh

Mr Omar Faisal Al-Rfooh MSN, Completed his Master degree in Nursing from Jordan Univerity Of Science ad Technolgy, Jordan. Currently, he is a postragute researcher and PhD student at the school of Nursing and Midwifery in Queen`s University Belfast (QUB), Uk. His Research interests are critical care Nursing, critically ill patients and cardiometabolic diseases.

Wejdan Khater

Dr. Wejdan Khater completed her PhD in Nursing from Kansas University Medical Center, USA. Currently, She is an Associate Professor and Vice Dean at Faculty of Nursing In Jordan Univeristy of Science and Technolofy. Her Resaerch works focuses on critical care nursing and palliative care as well as Symptoms management.