Effects of occupational stress and coping mechanisms adopted by radiographers in Ghana

• There is high level of occupational stress among Ghanaian Radiographers.
• Some sources and causes of occupational stress among Ghanaian Radiographers were workload, poor pay and shortage of staff.
• Job dissatisfaction, depression and sick absence were effects of occupational stress among Ghanaian Radiographers.
• Ghanaian Radiographers do not use tertiary interventional methods for coping with stress.
• Main coping method adopted by Ghanaian Radiographers was primary intervention.

BackgroundStudies have shown that population of radiography staff within various hospitals in Ghana decreased by 30% in the last decade due to several reasons. One of such reasons understood to be related to stress and job satisfaction which affect work output.PurposeTo investigate the effects of occupational stress and the coping mechanisms adopted by radiographers in Ghana.MethodA descriptive survey using a five-point Likert-scale questionnaire with pre-coded responses was administered via email to respondents. Purposive sampling method was used to select 190 radiographers who work in hospitals in Ghana. Descriptive statistics was mainly used to analyse the data using SPSS Version 20.ResultsOf a total 190 questionnaires sent, 122 were completed and returned giving a 64.3% response rate. Majority 78 (64%) of respondents were males and the predominant area of work was conventional radiography. Most radiographers revealed they were stressed with 63% indicating high/very high levels of stress. The consequent effects of stress on radiographers were sick absence, depression and job dissatisfaction. Most of the radiographers used primary interventions to cope with stress.ConclusionThis study has demonstrated that most radiographers in Ghana are stressed. However, they cope well with problem-solving mechanisms. This suggests that the decrease in number of radiographers within various facilities in Ghana by 30% may not necessarily be caused by stress but other factors which need to be investigated. Nevertheless, occupational stress has an effect on radiographers' quality of working life and may directly impact on their behaviour during service delivery.