Association between Presenteeism, Psychosocial Aspects of Work and Common Mental Disorders among Nursing Personnel

Abstract

Presenteeism is the term used to describe going in to work even with a health problem. The phenomenon has been identified as one prior factor in sickness absence and, accordingly, the better it is understood, the better will be the prevention strategies. This study aimed to examine the mediating role of presenteeism (the ability to concentrate on work and to complete work despite a health problem) in the association between psychosocial factors at work and common mental disorders (CMD). This cross-sectional study included 1218 nursing personnel at a public hospital in Brazil. Structural equation modelling was performed. The sample comprised mostly women (85.4%), and the mean age was 44.1 (SD = 11.3; range: 24-70) years. Prevalence of presenteeism was 32.8%. Among presenteeist workers (n = 400), a relationship was observed between presenteeism and higher CMD scores. Furthermore, being able to concentrate on work even with a health problem mediated the relationship between social support and CMD and between psychological demands and CMD. Working when sick impairs both the work and the worker's health. Interventions designed to improve working conditions and interpersonal relations can be effective strategies against presenteeism.

Keywords: common mental disorders; job stress; mental health; presenteeism; productivity loss; psychological demands; psychosocial aspects of work; social support at work.

Figure 1

The role of presenteeism (work completed and distraction avoided despite health problem) in the relationship between psychosocial aspects of work and common mental disorders (CMD). Legend: D1: fast work, D2: intensive work, D3: work effort, D4: time available, D5: conflicting demands, H1: learning new things, H2: skill and expertise, H3: using initiative, A1: how to do work, A2: what to do at work, SS1: work environment, SS2: relationship with co-workers, SS3: support from co-workers, SS4: co-workers’ understanding, SS5: relationship with supervisor(s), SS6: satisfaction with team; P1: hard to deal with stress at work; P2: manage to complete difficult tasks; P3: no pleasure in work; P4: hopeless about completing some tasks; P5: manage to concentrate on goals; P6: energetic enough to complete all work. The signs (+ or -) refer to the expected associations between the variables.