The Relationship between Professional Commitment and Anxiety with Human Error in the Operating Room Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: The operating room is a stressful environment where stress and anxiety can lead to human errors, jeopardizing patient safety. Professional commitment is believed to play a significant role in the quality of care provided and in reducing errors. Therefore, this study aims to explore the connection between professional commitment, anxiety, and human errors among operating room nurses. Methods In this descriptive cross-sectional study, the research population consisted of all operating room nurses (both scrub and circulating) working in hospitals affiliated with Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. The sample was selected based on convenience. The instruments used included a demographic information questionnaire, the Spielberger Trait Anxiety Questionnaire, a professional commitment questionnaire, and a researcher-made questionnaire on human medical errors in the operating room. Statistical data analysis was conducted using SPSS software and descriptive statistics methods (mean and standard deviation), as well as the Spearman correlation coefficient test. Results A direct and significant relationship was found between professional commitment and human errors, as well as between anxiety and human errors, in the operating room nurses participating in the study (r = 0.155, p = 0.011 and r = 0.168, p = 0.008, respectively). Professional commitment and anxiety were found to be predictors of the risk of human errors in the participants (p < 0.001, p = 0.013, respectively). Conclusion The results of the present study show a significant relationship between professional commitment and human errors, as well as between anxiety and human errors among the study participants. Therefore, it is recommended that managers of medical centers and hospitals take action to reduce human errors among operating room nurses by implementing interventions that aim to decrease anxiety and increase professional commitment.