Purpose
This study aimed to not only examine the changes in working hours and labor intensity, but also investigate their effects on sleep difficulties of shift work nurses.
Methods
Data from the 3rd (2011) to the 6th (2020) Korean Working Condition Surveys were analyzed, and the final sample included data of 514 nurses. Working time was measured considering nurses’ weekly working hours, number of night shifts, and number of days in a month when they worked more than 10 hours a day. Labor intensity included labor density, emotional labor, and work interruption. Sleep difficulty was measured using three items in 5th and 6th surveys.
Results
Weekly working hours, and long working days tended to decrease with the flow of the year, while work density, emotional labor, and work interruption tended to increase. Number of long working days, work density, and work interruption were found to produce a sleep difficulty effect in nurses.
Conclusion
To avoid sleep difficulties in nurses, adequate nurse staffing is required to prevent long working hours, and work density and work interruption need to be considered when determining the nurses’ workload.

Citations

• Effects of Work Demands and Rewards of Nurses on Exhaustion and Sleep Disturbance: Focusing on Comparison With Other Shift Workers
  Kyung Jin Hong
  Nursing Open.2025;[Epub]     CrossRef
• Dysmenorrhea and Occupational Factors
  Heeja Jung, Hyunju Dan, Chiyoung Cha, Yanghee Pang, Juan Manuel Carmona-Torres
  Journal of Nursing Management.2024;[Epub]     CrossRef

Purpose
This study aimed to identify the job characteristics of the integrated nursing care wards. Methods: For 388 nurses working in the integrated nursing wards of 30 hospitals, the importance, performance frequency, and difficulty of nursing tasks were analyzed using 31 job categories (678 items). Nursing tasks were analyzed using ImportancePerformance Analysis by hospital type. Results: Tertiary hospitals and general hospitals were analyzed using Importance-Performance Analysis, and the categories of general nursing intervention, spiritual and end of life nursing, and nursing during examination differed by hospital type. Other tasks into the same categories. 'Keep up the Good Work' includes 12 tasks: nursing assessment, medication and blood transfusion, admission or discharge management, and cooperation and coordination. 'Concentrate Here' had three tasks: emergency care, education to nurses, self-development. 'Possible Overkill' included supportive contact, environmental management, and product management. 'Low Priority' has ten tasks, including administration and organization management, facility management. Conclusion: Nurses had different perceptions of importance and difficulty according to the tasks. Nursing during the examination, general nursing intervention, spiritual nursing, and end-of-life nursing were placed in different domains according to hospital type. Therefore, it is necessary to establish the nursing tasks and plan to improve workforce management, reflecting these differences.

Citations

• Effects of a mobile simulation program for nursing delegation: A randomised controlled trial
  Haena Lim, Yeojin Yi
  Nurse Education in Practice.2025; 83: 104283.     CrossRef
• Effects of Shared Leadership and Communication Competence on Nursing Team Effectiveness in Comprehensive Nursing Service Units: Focusing on the Team Nursing System
  Hye Jin Kim, Eunjoo Lee
  Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration.2025; 31(2): 143.     CrossRef
• Influence of Work Environment, Missed Nursing Care, and Non-Nursing Tasks of Hospital Nurses on Job Stress
  Ji Yeong Park, Kyoung Ja Kim
  Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration.2024; 30(3): 246.     CrossRef
• Cancer Patients' and Caregivers' Experiences Admitted to Comprehensive Nursing Care Service Wards: An Exploratory Qualitative Research
  Sarah Lim, Mee Young Cho, Hyun Joo Shin, Ki Yeon Song, Soo Kyoung Shim, Yoon Jung Lee, Hea Jin Kwon, Ji Eun Kim, Hui Ean Kim, Hyun Ja Park, Han Wool An, So Jeong Hyeon, Sue Kim
  Asian Oncology Nursing.2024; 24(4): 173.     CrossRef
• An exploratory study of nursing tasks that induce physical and mental stress among hospital nurses
  Younhee Kang, Aekyeong Jin
  Applied Nursing Research.2024; 80: 151853.     CrossRef
• An exploratory study of the practical impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing tasks in clinical settings
  Younhee Kang, Hyeyoung Hwang
  Applied Nursing Research.2024; 76: 151790.     CrossRef
• Development of Guidelines for the Delegation of Nursing Tasks in Integrated Nursing Care Service
  Yeojin Yi, Haena Lim, Ji-Mee Kim, Jung-Hee Song
  Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration.2024; 30(2): 114.     CrossRef
• Comparison of Nursing Needs and Nursing Performance Perceived by Patients and Nurses in Integrated Nursing Care Service Wards in Small and Medium-Sized Hospitals: A Cross-Sectional Descriptive Study
  Hee-Sun Choi, Young Shin Cho
  Korean Journal of Adult Nursing.2023; 35(3): 234.     CrossRef