Effect of Time Management Training on Lifestyle of Nurses Working at General Surgery Wards of Hospitals in Sari Affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, 2016

Introduction: Time management skills are necessary for success and promotion of clinical competency among nurses. Effective use of time is one of the unavoidable necessities for success in work and life and is considered as one of the methods to create balance between work and life aspects. Time management includes the use of skills to control and use time. The current study aimed at determining the effect of time management training on lifestyle of nurses working at general surgery wards in hospitals of Sari affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medical Science in 2016. Methods: The current interventional study was conducted on 70 nurses working at general surgery wards of hospitals in Sari. Samples were selected by the convenience sampling method and divided into the control and experiment groups. Data were gathered by two questionnaires including demographic information and health promoting lifestyle profile developed by Walker before and after time management skills training. The validity of instruments was examined and necessary modifications were done. The reliability of instruments was measured by Cronbach’s alpha (0.83). Time management skills were instructed for three hours in two sessions for the intervention group. After a month, all participants in two groups again completed the questionnaire. Data were analyzed with SPSS version 22, descriptive and analytical statistics such as mean, standard deviation (SD), absolute and relative frequency, independent t test, and pairwise t test. Results: The control and experimental groups were similar in terms of demographic variables and lifestyle in all aspects and no significant difference was observed between the groups in before intervention measures. But, one month after intervention, a significant difference was observed between the variables. Scores in all aspects and total score of lifestyle in both groups before and after the intervention showed significant differences. Conclusions: The findings of the current study showed that time management training influences lifestyle at all aspects as well as total score. Therefore, some efforts should be applied to train time management skills and improve lifestyle. Therefore, it is recommended to consider time management training for nurses.