An Exploratory Analysis of the Relationship Between Psychiatric Nurses' Perceptions of Workload and Unit Activity

Although research exists relative to psychiatric nurses' perceptions of their work conditions, the relationship between nurses' perceptions of their workloads and the activities in which they engage has been unexplored. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between unit activity and nurses' perceptions of their workloads. The design is a secondary analysis using two data sources: (a) reports from 36 psychiatric nurses consisting of perceptions of their work conditions (n = 383) and (b) the hospital census and activity and acuity 24-hour shift reports (n = 384). Nurses' perceptions of workloads were related to unit activity; the greater the number of heavy and medium-to-heavy workloads, the higher the unit activity. This evidence contributes to the growing body of research demonstrating that nurses accurately provide information related to the hospital environment.