Research Articles (DHS)

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Browsing Research Articles (DHS) by Subject "Burnout"

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    Improving general health and reducing burnout of nurses in Namibia
    (AOSIS, 2020) Pieters, Wesley R.; Matheus, Letisha
    Orientation: Nurses make up 80% of Namibia’s healthcare workforce, and they are considered as the backbone of the industry. Because of the lack of other healthcare providers nurses are exposed to high levels of job stress. Research purpose: This study investigated how job demands-resources and psychological capital impact general health and burnout of nurses in Oshikoto, Kavango East, Oshana, Omaheke and Khomas regions. Motivation for the study: Improving the work environment by balancing the relationship between job demands and job resources will result in lower levels of burnout, improved healthcare services, improved employee performance and patient satisfaction. Research design/approach and method: Using questionnaires, this study investigated the perceptions of nurses within selected regions of Namibia to understand the relationship amongst these variables. The results were analysed using the SPSS (version 24), Pearson’s product–moment correlation and multiple regression analyses. Main findings: Emotional exhaustion was found to have a positive relationship with general health and workload. Social dysfunction and anxiety and insomnia were found to be significant predictors of cynicism. Anxiety and insomnia, workload and social dysfunction were found to be significant predictors of emotional exhaustion. Practical/managerial implications: Healthcare sector needs to invest in health education and stress management programmes for nurses on how to take care of their own health and emotional well-being. Providing training and development opportunities and coping strategies increases nurses’ psychological capital, general health, skills and abilities. Contribution/value-add: This ground breaking study in Namibia will pave the way for future research regarding the health and well-being of health professionals, add to the already existing knowledge within industrial and organisational psychology and guide interventions to improve the health and well-being.
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    Investigating the Relationship between Workload-Resources and Exhaustion of Nurses and Police Officers in Namibia
    (2018) Pieters, Wesley R.; Van Heerden, A.A.
    A lot has been published on burnout within the service industry; however, an in-depth investigation of job stressors and burnout in both the safety and health sectors of Namibia has been left unexplored. This study investigated the relationship between job demands-resources and burnout. Burnout occurs when an individual is exposed to emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job (exhaustion, cynicism and professional efficacy). Job demands require continuous efforts and job resources are aspects of the organisation that are helpful in achieving goals, reducing costs of job demands and stimulating growth and development. The sample is made up of police officers (n=482) and nursing staff (n=672) from various regions within Namibia (n=1154). Results were analysed using the SPSS (version 24) to assess the relationships between the variables. The results revealed exhaustion had a relationship with the workload, resources and organisational support. Lower levels of workload, accompanied with higher levels of resources and organisation support would reduce exhaustion. The workload can be managed by making using of time-management training, improving delegation, and by ensuring the employees have mentors and supervisory support. Training opportunities improve work resources and reduce work stress. Healthy coping strategies, like being active and meditation help to alleviate stress (exhaustion). Having healthy work relations enhances organisational support and improves coping mechanisms of employees.
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    Investigating the role of emotional intelligence to mitigate the impact of burnout on employees in the Khomas region, Namibia
    (Namibian Journal for Research, Science and Technology, 2021) Ingo, S; Fernandes, A; Ndove, E; Pieters, Wesley R.
    Employees are faced with constant changes and those with higher emotional intelligence are likely to remain calm and be less affected by these changes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether emotional intelligence has an influence on burnout of employees in the Khomas Region. The Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (EQQ) was used to measure emotional intelligence and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) was used to measure burnout. Making use of SPSS, the data was analysed to assess the relationship. The study made use of availability sampling and a total of 191 employees participated in the study. The results showed that a negative correlation exists between emotional intelligence and burnout (r= - ds organisations to host seminars and workshops which can equip their employees with ways on how to cope with stress and challenges, ensuring that the employees workload id reasonable and have regular health check-ups. Using emotional assessment as part of the recruitment process may ensure that the workforce is able to handle stressful work and be resilient despite experiencing difficult working conditions.
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    Job demands and burnout: The moderating effect of psychological capital amongst call centre employees in Windhoek, Namibia
    (African Journal of Inter/Multidisciplinary Studies, 2020) Fernando, Reena; Hlatywayo, Clifford Kendrick; Amukwaya, Ester; Pieters, Wesley R.
    The call centre industry has been growing each year. Growth in the industry puts pressure on call centre employees as the job becomes highly demanding and their tasks increase. Introducing the positive aspects of psychological capital allows for someone to better deal with the daily challenges of a highly demanding job. The relationship between job demands and psychological capital is lacking in literature as it has not been extensively studied. The paper explores the moderating effect of psychological capital on the relationship between burnout and job demand amongst a selection of call centre employees in Windhoek, Namibia. Questionnaires were distributed to call centre employees and n=156 employees participated in the study. Results showed that job demand was significantly negatively correlated to burnout (r= -1.79; p= 0.028); Psychological Capital (PsyCap) was significantly positively related to job demands (r= 0.425; p= 0.000); psychological capital and burnout (r= 0.013; p= 0.873) did not yield a significant difference; the linear regression model yielded a significant level of F statistics (F= 2.888; df= 2; P=.046; R2=0.39.). The researchers recommend that organisations and human resource managers invest in these intangible resources in order to enhance employee coping mechanisms to counter burnout in highly demanding occupations.