Factors contributing to absenteeism of nurses in primary care centres in the Ethekwini Municipal District of Kwazulu-Natal

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:Absenteeism is a problem all over the world and a solution cannot be easily found.This is also a challenge faced by employers in South Africa. Absenteeismexacerbates the difficulty of health service delivery in many countries where thenumber of nurses available is insufficient to meet all of the healthcare demands in thehealth care sector, in this regard South Africa is no exception to this problem. Theannual loss to the South African economy caused by absenteeism is between R12billion and R19.144 billion per year. A combination of factors, namely characteristicsof the nurse, the workplace, management, as well as characteristics of theorganisation can influence absenteeism.Absenteeism of nurses is on the increase at primary care centres in the Ethekwinimunicipal district and it has a negative impact on provision of health care serviceswhere the study is proposed. It is imperative that sufficient nursing staff be availablefor duty to provide services to clients. No research on absenteeism has beenconducted at these institutions. Therefore, identifying the contributing factors in orderto be able to manage it effectively is essential.The aim of this research was to identify factors that contribute to absenteeism ofnurses at eight primary care centres in the Ethekwini municipal district of KwaZulu-Natal. A quantitative descriptive exploratory research design was applied for thispurpose.The population was all categories of permanently employed nursing staff working atthe eight primary care centres. The total population consisted of 689 nurses.Following a pilot study consisting of 10% of the total sample, a research sample wascompiled by means of a simple random sampling method and included 30% of allcategories of nurses – registered nurses, enrolled nurses and nursing assistants.Hundred and ninety one nurses out of 209 responded to the research study, whichsets the response rate at 91%. Data was collected by means of an existingquestionnaire. The questionnaire focused on the characteristics of the nurse,manager, work environment and organisation in order to identify factors thatcontribute to absenteeism of nurses.The data was analysed with the support of a statistician and was expressed asfrequencies in tables and histograms. Descriptive statistical analyses, including tests for statistical associations, were performed. Results of this study indicate significantrelationships between characteristics of the nurse, the manager, workplace and theorganisation. Factors that were identified included stress, staff shortage, workoverload, lack of promotion opportunities, lack of child care facilities, lack ofappreciation and feedback, bureaucratic leadership styles, inflexible workingschedules and lack of a satisfactory reward system.The results further indicate no significant relationship between demographicalvariables and absenteeism.Recommendations based on the results were offered and recommendations forfuture research were made.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University