Comparing the Relationship of Emotional Intelligence and General Health in Nurses of Intensive Care Units With General Units in Qazvin

Abstract

Background and aims: To know that how emotional intelligence and general health are related, can<br />play a crucial role in the quality of nurses' performance. The present study was conducted to compare<br />the relationship of emotional intelligence and general health in nurses of intensive care units with<br />other units in Qazvin city, Iran.<br />Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among nurses working in hospitals of Qazvin in<br />2018. To this end, 250 nurses were selected by random sampling. Data collection tool was Goldberg<br />General Health Standard Questionnaire (GHQ) and Shearing's Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire<br />(EIQ). Data were analyzed by SPSS statistical software version 18.0 using the statistical tests of<br />Pearson correlation, t test, ANOVA, chi-square, and liner regression. A P value less than 0.05 was also<br />considered statistically significant.<br />Results: The mean score of general health was 21.33 ± 10 and the mean score of emotional intelligence<br />was 122.8 ± 11.5. The findings showed that there was a statistically significant relationship between<br />emotional intelligence and general health and all general health components (P < 0.05). Level of<br />depression in Intensive Care Unit was higher than that in other units (P < 0.05). Moreover, according<br />to linear regression coefficient, there was a statistically significant association between general health<br />and emotional intelligence (P < 0.05), to such a degree that increasing emotional intelligence caused<br />an increase in general health. This model identified 5.6% of health variance, emotional intelligence,<br />and body mass index (BMI) variables as predictive variables.<br />Conclusion: Considering the fact that nursing is a stressful profession, attention to emotional<br />intelligence is very effective and valuable in improving mental health and as a result, in reducing<br />job stress, increasing the quality of nursing care, reducing burnout, and ultimately increasing patient<br />satisfaction from nursing care.