Stress and work engagement in health professionals

Occupational stress can produce negative consequences on workers’ mental and physical health, which affect them and their organization. Work engagement, on the other hand, is linked with positive affective-motivational states of realization related to work, and negatively correlates with fatigue, anxiety, and depression. Thus, this study aimed to analyse the relationships between stress and engagement in health professionals working in a hospital in the North of Portugal. A convenience sample of 221 health professionals participated in this cross-sectional study and answered two instruments to assess stress and engagement at work. Results showed that stress dimensions predicted the three dimensions of engagement. Specifically, health professionals with no intention to change services, those with more stress dealing with clients, and who worked only at the hospital showed higher overall engagement. Conversely, participants who reported more stress in their relationships at work and in leading training activities presented with less work engagement. Therefore, these findings contribute to increase the knowledge of health professional’s mental conditions and can be used to implement interventions to mitigate the effects of stress on these professionals and increase their levels of work engagement.