THE IMPACT OF EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIOURAL DISTURBANCES ON

WORK OUTPUT AMONG HEALTH WORKERS IN FATHER THOMAS ALAN

ROONEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, ASANKRANGWA, GHANA.

ERIC KWASI ELLIASON

Abstract

Emotional and Behavioral disturbances create problems in everyday life activities and affect
intrapersonal and interpersonal relationships. Such disorders could manifest cognitively in
forgetfulness, short attention span, and negative thoughts and negatively impact workers' work
output. The study was conducted to assess the impact of emotional and behavioural disturbances
on the work output of health workers at Father Thomas Alan Rooney Memorial Hospital,
Asankrangwa in the Western Region of Ghana. The study adopted a survey study design using
purposive and convenience random techniques with a sample size of 50 respondents. The data
were gathered using a structured questionnaire. Quantitative data analysis methods were used
with the aid of SPSS version 21.0

The study found that most of the respondents have ever had emotional disturbances at work and
that emotional disturbances that occurred at home had the propensity to affect the work output of
health workers. The causes of emotional disorders at the workplace were identified as workload
and stress, poor management, lack of motivation, poor remuneration, mood swing and personality
type, work-related conflicts and insecurity. The causes of such problems at home were
relationship and marital issues, disappointments, financial issues, loss of a loved one, family
issues. In addition, emotional and behavioural disturbances could lead to lower quality of care
and professional satisfaction, difficulty concentrating, ineffectual job performance, poor customer
care, problems in work relationships, decreased interest or involvement in work, a decline in
dependability frequent late arrivals.

The study recommends that a Counselling Psychologist help deal with workplace emotional
disturbances. It was also suggested that there should be periodic mental health screening
programmes for the hospital staff and robust psychological support systems be put in place.
Introduction

Emotional and Behavioral disturbances create problems in everyday life activities and

affect intrapersonal and interpersonal relationships. Such disorders could manifest

cognitively as forgetfulness, short attention span and negative thoughts. The propensity to

be absent or late for work or even negligence are also signs of possible emotional

problems. Emotional and Behavioural disturbances could also lead to hyperactivity and

its associated issues and thus could affect the general life pattern of individuals.

Employment in a full-time job implies spending a good part of one's waking hours in a

workplace environment, where personal issues and emotions can sometimes spill over

into one's professional world. In addition to regulating one's emotional behaviours, one

must contend with colleagues and co-workers juggling their emotional issues. Both

circumstances can potentially impact both the workplace and the hospital work output.

Emotions occur naturally and can disturb others positively or negatively. For example, a

colleague who smiles at you and makes a nice comment while toiling at a difficult

assignment can encourage your spirit. Similarly, a co-worker who makes an offensive

comment because of some temporary work-related problem can place you in a bad mood

for the rest of the day. The emotions of people working in close confines are contagious,

mostly if people are not aware of how their moods and behaviour affect others. Even

when people try to hide their emotions, they can still send off feelings through facial

expressions, body language, mannerisms, and general attitude (Lisa, 2018).

Emotional expressions undoubtedly have a lot of influence on work output. It is a truism

that Employees' moods, emotions, and overall dispositions impact job performance,

decision making, creativity, turnover, teamwork, negotiations and leadership. It will be

difficult to record any high work output among workers in an environment of hostility

and hatred. The reason is that there would surely not be any cooperation among such

workers and the effects are disastrous. The researcher has noticed lots of emotional

outbursts in healthcare delivery settings in some facilities in Ghana. These outbursts

affect the quality of care and scare clients away from such health facilities. Emotional

and behavioural disturbances lead to poor work output in some other instances. This work

thus seeks to look at the impact of emotional and behavioural disorders on work output

among health workers at the Father Thomas Alan Rooney Memorial Hospital,

Asankrangwa in the Western Region of Ghana.

Theoretical Background

It is sometimes challenging to find the exact words to define emotion, but definitions

exist for emotion. Cabanac (2002) opines that "There is no consensus in the literature on

a definition of emotion. The term is taken for granted in itself and, most often, emotion is

defined concerning a list: anger, disgust, fear, joy, sadness, and surprise" emotion has

been defined as a "sudden trouble, transient agitation caused by an acute experience of

fear, surprise, joy, etc." (Larousse Dictionary, 1990, cited in Cabanac, 2002). The Oxford

English Dictionary (1987) defines emotions as a "mental feeling or affection (e.g. pain,

desire, hope, etc.) as distinct from cognition or volitions". Schachter and Singer (1962,

cited in Cabanac, 2002) define emotion as "a state of physiological arousal and cognition

appropriate to this state of arousal."

From the various definitions, it could be noted that emotion is a complex feeling state

accompanied by physiological arousal and overt behaviour. Emotions play a significant

role whenever we try to attain happiness or get rid of anger, irritation, etc. The most
distinct aspect of emotion is the feeling component to the emotionally aroused person.

For instance, a worker becomes upset after every bang from his superior. Soon he

develops a kind of panic towards his superior and instantaneously trembles and turns pale

whenever he happens to meet him. This feeling cannot precisely be described. Perhaps,

he may overcome this fear by developing another strong emotion that comforts him

(Gopinath, 2011).

Emotions play a role at five levels: within-person, individual, dyadic, group and

organisational. Examples of the thrust of research at each level are Fisher and

Ashkanasy's (2000) work on emotions and individual and within-person variations in

affect; a model of leadership and emotions; work on emotional intelligence in groups

(Jordan et al., 2002) and work in progress on emotional climate, an organisational level

phenomenon.

Early organisational theorists mostly overlooked emotions or presumed that they played a

negative role by biasing perceptions and interfering with administrative rationality.

Nonetheless, important work on emotional labour clarified that the exhibition of proper

emotions is critical to many organisations and plays a massive role in how employees are

perceived (Gopinath, 2011).

In a study titled 'Why Does Affect Matter in Organisations' co-authored by Sigal Barsade

(Knowledge@Wharton, 2007), it is well established that Employees' moods, emotions,

and overall dispositions have an impact on job performance, decision making, creativity,

turnover, teamwork, negotiations and leadership. Affect (emotion) matters at the

workplace because "people are not isolated' emotional islands.' Rather, they bring all of
themselves to work, including their traits, moods and emotions, and their affective

experiences and expressions influence others" (Knowledge@Wharton, 2007).

Barsade and Gibson (cited in Knowledge@Wharton) believe that employees emotions

are integral to what happens in an organisation and that " everybody brings their emotions

to work. You bring your brain to work. You bring your emotions to work. Feelings drive

performance. They drive behaviour and other feelings. So think of people as emotion

conductors." Emotions do not have to be grand and obvious to have an impact. Subtle

displays of emotion, such as frowning quickly, can also have an effect.

1.4 Purpose and Rationale of the Study

Work, family problems, health issues, relationship, financial burden and a Type A

personality are common factors contributing to stress responses, which may in turn result

in different types of emotional disturbances, such as anxiety disorder and depression. The

symptoms of anxiety disorder include panic attacks and sleeplessness, while people

suffering from depression are sometimes negative and self-critical, accompanied by

sleeplessness, as well as loss of concentration and appetite. Physical and mental

symptoms may also develop in the process which can have negative impact on one's

performance in the work output of health workers and any working class. Not paying

much attention to workers' behavioural emotional changes in the work environment could

lead to inefficiencies and low productivity (Helley, 2018).

It is for this reason that this study looks at the impact of emotional and behavioural

disturbances on work output of health workers in Father Thomas Allan Rooney Memorial
Hospital in the Western Region of Ghana. This cursory study considers the following

thematic stands;

(i) Causes of emotional and behavioural disturbances that affect work output of

health workers

(ii) Negative effects of these emotional and behavioural disturbances on work

output and

(iii) Ways of managing these emotional and behavioural disturbances among

health workers.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Causes of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at work

Some emotional and behavioural disturbances present an extra challenge when we encounter

them at work. Five hard-to-handle emotions that are common in the workplace that we need to

pay attention to, according to research by Ohio State professor, Cynthia Fisher, are: frustration;

worry or insecurity; anger; feeling "down"; and dislike.

Frustration: the complications of today's work environment and the demands that are

placed on all of us to perform make frustration or irritation one of the most common

negative workplace emotions. Frustration can build from many situations including: lack

of resources impacting our ability to perform well, a co-worker's poor performance that is

undermining our performance, restricted promotional opportunities that make us feel

stagnant in the profession and managers who are very difficult and ignores ideas meant

for improvement.
Worry or Insecurity: change, and the feeling of loss of control that change often triggers,

can make us feel nervous or insecure at work, and can even affect our self-confidence.

Typical changes that can cause us to worry and that may increase our feelings of

apprehension are: hearing a new downsizing rumor, getting to know that a new manager

is going to lead the team, being assigned to a different area of responsibility.

Anger: banging doors and shouting come quickly to mind as examples of anger. But it is

imperative to remember that anger takes many forms and that most of them are not

physical. These are various common forms anger likely to be displayed at work: being

excessively critical of others, criticising or intimidating others, being abrupt and

dismissive, being skeptical and sarcastic "sabotaging" other people's work indirectly; for

example, by being consistently late to meetings, replying late to messages or not sharing

information.

Feeling down: everybody has a bad day now and then. When we feel down, we may

have low energy, worry more than usual, feel distracted or guilty about time away from

family and friends, and feel disappointed or unhappy, not just ready to doing full load of

activities.

Dislike: we work with many different types of people who have a wide variety of

personalities. All of us, from time-to-time, find ourselves working closely, or even

reporting to someone we do not like from a personal point of view. Examples could be a

demanding boss who rarely thanks employees for a job well done, a co-worker who

doesn't pull her weight, a customer who speaks rudely to you. All of us need to find ways

to work effectively and productively with people we dislike, without letting our emotions

affect our actions.

Moods: moods, both good and bad, are temporary conditions that can lift a work

environment or bring it down. For example, if you arrive at the office one morning full of

energy and enthusiasm for a work, you can potentially lift the moods of your work mates

and make significant headway on your work. Someone in a foul mood can actually hurt

productivity, particularly if the person is a naysayer who impedes progress through

negative commentary or an argumentative approach.

Emotional Personality: Some people are naturally upbeat, while others are naturally

stubborn. Working directly with these individuals can significantly impact your own

attitude, for better or for worse. A person's personality is more problematic, particularly if

it's negative. Unlike mood, personality traits don't easily or quickly change.

Poor management: poor managers run the scale from micromanagers who make it feel

like you cannot even a little breathe any without permission to "buddies" who want to be

everyone's friend and provide no real leadership. Unprofessional, overbearing or

incompetent bosses cause a trickle-down effect that creates lots of difficulties that may

ultimately turn into Human Resource related issues (Shelley, 2018).

Incompetency at the leadership level can hurt morale and productivity. It is very hard to

take directives from someone who is a poor example of a leader, no matter what the

reason. Some boss behaviors can cause a lot of frictions between employees. A boss who

plays preferences can create bitterness between co-workers, for example. If a manager

fails to address poor performance, employees may continue to slack or get progressively

worse, which decreases the overall quality of what the institution expects (Shelley, 2018).
High-Stress Work Environments: a slight stress can facilitate performance, but a lot of

stress at the work place has a negative effect on the individual. Consistently high stress

levels can cause issues in the workplace. Some jobs are naturally higher stress than

others. Working in a hospital emergency room keeps you in a fast-paced life or death

situation most of the time. In other workplaces, stress is induced because of the

managerial style or overall corporate culture.

Bullying Behaviors: bullying in the workplace goes beyond conflicting personalities or

people you don't like. A workplace bully uses intimidation to undermine a colleague.

This behavior can cause serious emotional harm to the person on the receiving end of the

behavior. Instances of bullying include creating malicious rumors, belittling someone,

screaming or using profanities toward a co-worker, tampering with a person's belongings,

and physically threatening someone.

2.3 Negative Effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances on Work Output

Productivity is negatively affected not only by absenteeism, but also by "presenteeism" –

that is, when employees are at work but unable to function well because of problems such

as concentration, accuracy or memory that are associated with emotional and behavioural

difficulties. For instance, unmanaged anger has obvious impact on productivity, team

relationships, and physical and emotional well-being. It is often a clear signal that

something serious is wrong and this needs to be addressed immediately.

Factors that may play a role regarding workplace-related emotional and behavioural

disorders could have a negative impact on the health professionals' emotional health are

the following:
 i) the stressful nature of the profession. Work-related stress in combination with

psychological quests, ethical dilemmas and the patients' demands can be a

burden on the professional's emotional state (Bakker, Killmer, & Siegriest ,

2000)

ii) ii) Workplace anxiety and tensions could lead to lower quality of care, which

in its turn could lower professional satisfaction and consequently their quality

of life. (de Boer et al., 2011).

iii) Continuous interaction with the patients and their families/friends can foster

emotions of anger, embarrassment, fear, and desperation, especially when

there are no solutions to the patients' problems, thus leading health

professionals to a more complicated, frustrating situation (Ibid, 2011).

iv) iv) Lack of support from colleagues and higher rank staff, conflicts among

members of the therapeutic team, vague roles, different hierarchy ranks, lack

of an organisational structure and administration-related factors have their

share regarding psychiatric morbidity (Ibid, 2011).

v) v) Some causal factors for include individual characteristics, such as

personality, personal experiences, emotional maturity, personal style, as well

as demographics such as age, sex, socio-economical status, years of

employment and family status (Mészáros, Cserháti , Oláh, et al., 2013).

Psychological and Emotional- Individuals experiencing job insecurity have an increased

risk for anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and somatic complaints. Marital and

Family- Spouses and children can feel the crossover effects of burnout brought home

from the workplace. Depleted levels of energy that influence home management is
another effect. Organisational- Negative feelings at work effect employee morale,

turnover rate, commitment to the organisation (Balducci, 2015). Individuals not being

able to control their personal emotions and recognise emotional cues in their co-workers

can be devastating in the workplace. It can lead to conflict between you and others.

2.4 Ways of Managing Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances among Health

Workers

According to Gopinath (2011) managing emotions and behavioural disturbances is one

way for employees to achieve organisational goals. Assuming an employee was to

express a depressed mood or anger toward a co-worker or customer that would ruin the

performance. Dramaturgical perspective offered two main ways for actors to manage

emotions: through surface acting where, one regulates the emotional expressions and

through deep acting where, one consciously modifies feelings in order to express the

desired emotion. One of major tenets is that this management of emotions requires effort.

There are several coping strategies for emotional disturbances but first of all you need

awareness. Any emotional or psychological change can be a signal, whether it is feeling

down or a sudden shopping addiction. Mindfulness meditation has proven to be a useful

way to manage emotional and behavioural disturbances at work place. Mindfulness aims

to cultivate and sustain attention in the present without judgment.

Behavioural strategies such as muscle relaxation also bring similar benefits. Abdominal

breathing, imagery relaxation, cardio exercises and even tai-chi can help regulate

your mood. There are also cognitive strategies that can be used, learn to change your

perspective and be less negative. It is possible to become more aware of emotions and to
recognise and identify the feelings you are having so that you understand what triggered

them and learn to manage them more effectively.

Recognise emotions in their early stages: by reviewing the day's activities and the

feelings that were triggered by them, there is a good chance to discover the source of

whatever difficult feelings one might have experienced. If writing things down helps

clarify these thoughts, you might try doing this as you are reviewing the emotions and the

work circumstances when they occurred.

Learn to express emotions in appropriate: deal with difficult feelings in appropriate

ways for the work place. Take the time to consider what may have triggered the feeling

and consider actions you could take to diffuse such a situation in the future. Crucial

Conversations and Crucial Confrontations contain practical advice for managing difficult

emotions.

Problem-solve by writing it down: this can be especially helpful if a problem is keeping

you awake at night. If you are having an ongoing conflict with a co-worker, you might

write: "Every time we talk, even about unimportant things, we end up arguing.

Build up your emotional resilience. Pay attention to your overall physical and

psychological health. Eat well, get enough sleep, and exercise regularly. If you are well-

rested, well-nourished, and physically strong, you will have more energy to meet

emotional challenges.

Maintain support systems outside of work. Talking honestly about your concerns with

close friends or your partner can help reduce your anxiety and keep problems in

perspective. Choose someone you trust who knows you well enough to give you honest

feedback when you need it.

Cultivate interests outside of work, including activities with good friends. Remember, not

all satisfaction comes from work accomplishments.

2.4.1 Emotional wellbeing in the workplace

Health facilities will benefit from having a workforce that is in a state of robust

physical and emotional health, it is not difficult for companies to foster a work

environment that is conducive to the emotional wellbeing of employees-thus

engaging staff in sessions on how to manage stress, while having each level of

supervisory staff be alert to any irregular emotional or behavioural signs that their

staff may exhibit. Showing support to staff will boost morale, and enhance

organisational identity and productivity.

2.4.2 Supportive Environment

When it comes to an individual staff experiencing emotional issues, managers need to

respect and adhere to the principle of strict confidentiality. Nonetheless, a company

culture that promotes acceptance, tolerance and peer support will generally help a

colleague make a faster recovery. To help companies identify and meet the challenges

posed by emotional disturbance in the workplace, some private healthcare providers

,offer tailor-made corporate health assessment plans that include mental health

screening, after all, emotional health is part and parcel of physical health.
METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction

The Methodology indicates the way the research objectives are achieved. It introduces

the study design and type. The chapter clearly shows the instruments that were used to

collect data, the sampling techniques that are employed, data analysis method.

3.2 Brief Profile of Study Area

Father Thomas Alan Rooney Memorial Hospital (FTARMH) was established and

officially inaugurated as a hospital on 3rd October, 1954 at Asankrangwa in the Western

Region under the National Catholic Health service (NCHS) of the Christian Health

Association of Ghana (CHAG). FTARMH is a faith – based hospital with a long standing

reputation for providing quality healthcare service to a rather expanding area and has

since been operating in accordance with the Roman Catholic Ethics and Philosophy. The

hospital has a one hundred and thirteen (113) bed capacity with staff strength of two

hundred and eighty seven (287). It came to existence through the generous contribution

of seven hundred and seventy seven (777) people to Mercy Fund. It is a full service and

not for profit Hospital.

3.3 Study Design

The study employs a survey design. Tariq (2009) defined survey as a method of gathering

information from a number of individuals, known as a sample, in order to learn

something about the larger population from which the sample is drawn. This study relies

on the survey method because it involves a statistical study of a sample population by

asking questions about the impact of emotional and behavioural disturbances on work

output of health workers in Fr. Thomas Allan Rooney Memorial Hospital in the Western
Region of Ghana. The survey design was used for this study because it helps the

researcher to solicit the needed information to arrive at a tangible conclusion.

Quantitative data are gathered through the use of open-ended and close-ended

questionnaire.

3.4 Study Population

Brink (2006) defines study population as an entire group or persons or objects that are of

interest to the researcher. The study was conducted among health workers which

comprised of clinical and non-clinical staff in hospital. The population is chosen because

the researcher is convinced that they are in the right position to provide the needed

information regarding emotional and behavioural disturbances in the work place.

3.5 Sample and Sampling Technique

The study used non-probability sampling technique. This comprises convenience and

purposive sampling-with the convenience sampling technique, any staff the researcher

meets on duty was interviewed. All wards in charges were purposively selected for the

study. This was done till the required sample size of fifty (50) respondents was obtained.

3.6 Research Instruments

The primary tool for the data collection was interrogation using structured questionnaires.

This method was used because it enabled the researcher to obtain responses and allowed

for a comparative analysis. Questions were asked and the responses were filled in the

questionnaires. The questionnaire comprised both open-ended and close-ended questions.

3.7 Data Analysis

After gathering the data, the items were screened, arranged and sorted out. The data were
organised and fed into the computer for analysis using the Statistical Package of Social

Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0 software. Frequencies and percentages were the main

descriptive statistics for the data analysis. All these were employed to enable the

researcher answer the research questions, explore relationships among variables, make

meaning, and develop theory from the collected data. This was made possible through the

use of charts, table, frequencies and percentage to display result for clarification and easy

comprehension.

3.8 Ethnical Consideration

The nature, purpose and procedure of the study were explained to each participant and

they were made aware that they were free to answer any question or decline to contribute

to the study without being affected. Participants were made aware that participation was

voluntary and their responses are kept confidential.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Introduction

This chapter is concerned with the data presentation analysis, interpretation and

discussion using the method already described earlier in Chapter three. Every data

presented, analysed, interpreted and discussed are based on the outcome of the

respondents using questionnaire.

4.2 Background Information of Respondents

Table 1: Background Information of Respondents

Variable Response Frequency (N=50) Percentage (%)

Sex Male 18 36.0
Female 32 64.0
Total 50 100.0
 Marital Status Married 27 54.0
Single 20 40.0
Co-habitating 3 6.00
Total 50 100.0
Terms of Employment Permanent 46 92.0
contract 4 8.00
Causal 0 0.00
Total 50 100.0
Years of Service 1-3yrs 14 28.0
4-6yrs 20 40.0
7-9yrs 9 18.0
10-12yrs 7 14.0
Total 50 100.0
Source: Field Survey (2019)

Table 1 above shows the background information of respondents. Sex distributions

revealed that majority (64%) of respondents were females whereas (36%) were males.

Marital status indicated more than half (54%) of the respondents were married, (40%)

single and the remaining (6%) were co-habitating. The terms of employment of

respondents shows that majority (92%) were permanent workers. Considering

respondents years of service in the hospital, (40%) of those who participated in the study

have served the facility between 4-6 years, followed by (28%) between 1-3 years, (18%)

between 7-9 years and (14%) served between 10-12 years.

4.2.2 Causes of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at work

Figure 1: Ever Experience Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at Work
 12%

Yes
No

88%

Source: Field Survey (2019)

The pie chart reveled that majority (88%) of the respondents had ever experienced

emotional and behavioural disturbances at work before; only (12%) indicated they have

not.

Table 2: Causes of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at Work

Responses Frequency (N=50) Percentage (%)

Workload and stress 18 36.0
Poor management 2 4.00
Lack of motivation 4 8.00
Poor remuneration 2 4.00
Mood swings and personality type 12 24.0
Work related conflicts 4 8.00
Insecurity 8 16.0
Total 50 100.0
Source: Field Survey (2019)

Findings from table 2 show the causes of emotional and behavioural disturbances at

work. It turned out that (36%) of the respondents indicated workload and stress, followed

by (24%) of the those who said mood swings and personality type, (16%) indicated job

insecurity,(8%) of the respondents stated lack of motivation and (4%) of the

respondents at the same time affirmed poor remuneration and management.

Figure 2 :Causes of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at home

42.5
37.5
Pecentage of respondents

32.5
27.5
22.5
17.5
12.5
7.5
2.5
Relationship and Disappointments Financial prob- Loss of loved one Family issues
marital issues lems

Percent(%) 44 24 18 8 6

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Figure 2 indicates the causes and emotional and behavioural disturbances back at home.

The data gathered revealed a higher proportion (44%) of the respondents stated it is due

to relationship and marital issues, (24%) indicated disappointments, (18%) said financial

problems, whiles (8%) and (6%) of the respondents stated loss of loved ones and family

issues respectively.

Figure 3: Whether Emotional and Behavioural disturbances at home can Affect

work output
 8% 4%

Yes
No
Don’t know

88%

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Data gathered from figure 3 revealed that vast majority (88%) affirmed that emotional

and behavioural disturbances at home can affect work.

4.2.3 Negative Effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances on Work output

Figure 4: Emotional and behavioural disturbances have negative effects on work
output
Percentage of Respondents

100 92
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20 6
10 2
0
Agree Neutral Disagree
Response

Source: Field Survey (2019)

From figure 4 above preponderance (92%) of the respondents agreed that emotional and

behavioural disturbance can have effects on work output.

Table 3: Effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at work

 Responses Frequency (N=50) Percentage (%)
Lower quality of care and professional satisfaction 14 28.0
Difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or 10 20.0
remembering
Ineffectual job performance 7 14.0
Poor customer care and problems in work relationship 12 24.0
Decreased interest or involvement in work 3 6.0
Decline in dependability 2 4.0
Frequent late arrivals 2 4.0
Total 50 100.0
Source: Field Survey (2019)

Table 3 shows the effects of emotional and behavioural disturbances at work. The data

revealed that, (28%) of the respondents said it can lead to lower quality of care and

professional satisfaction; (24%) indicated it can contribute to poor customers care and

problems in work relationship; this was followed by (20%) of respondents who also said

difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or remembering task; (14%) also stated

ineffectual job performance at work; (6%) it can decreased interest or involvement in

work whiles (4%) of the respondents it contribute to decline in dependability and

frequent late arrivals to work.

Figure 5: There Is the Tendency to Carry Negative Emotions from Home to Work

24%

Agree
4%
Disagree
Neutral
72%
Source: Field Survey (2019)

Data obtained from figure 5 found that majority (72%) of the respondents agreed there is

the tendency to carry negative emotions from home to work whereas (24%) of the

respondents disagreed.

4.2.4 Ways of Managing Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances among Health

Workers
Figure 6: Avenues for Managing Emotional and Behavioural Disturbance in the
Hospital

32%

Yes
56% No
don’t know
12%

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Findings from figure 6 revealed that more than half (56%) of the respondents affirmed

that there are avenues for managing emotional and behavioural disturbance in the hospital

whiles (32%) said they do not know.

Figure 7: Department/ Person Responsible for managing Emotional and

Behavioural Disturbances in the Hospital
 Percentage of Respondents
44
50
40 28
20
30
20
10
0

Response

Source: Field Survey (2019)

When respondents were asked about the department/persons responsible for managing

emotional and behavioural disturbances in the hospital, higher number (44%) of the

respondents said it is the mental health, followed by (28%) of those who also stated the

human resource unit while the remaining (20%) of the respondents said the hospitals

chaplain.

Figure 8: Whether Respondents Repose Trust/Confidence in the Unit/Person

Responsible

11%

25%
Yes
No
don’t know
64%

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Findings as per above figure 8 indicated that majority (64%) of those interviewed said

that they repose trust/confidence in the units/responsible for managing emotional and

behavioural disturbance in the hospital (25%) indicated no while (11%) said they do not

know.

Figure 9: There Should Be Periodic Mental Health Screening for Staff in the
Hospital
Percentage of Respondents

94
100

80

60

40

20 4 2
0
Agree Neutral Disagree
Response

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Data obtained from figure 9 revealed that vast majority (94%) of the respondents agreed

that there should be periodic mental health screening for staff in the hospital. This implies

that majority of staff who took part in the Study support the idea that screening among
staff will help rule out possible emotional issues that disturb the person as early as

possible.

Table 4: How Respondents manage Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances

Responses Frequency (N=50) Percentage (%)

By confiding in people I trust 22 44.0
Self-motivation and control 10 20.0
Reading the bible and meditation 8 16.0
By shifting attention from the situation 4 8.00
Listening to music and imagining good things 4 8.00
Focusing on work and leaving personal 2 4.00
problems
Total 50 100.0

Source: Field Survey (2019)

Data obtained from table 4 shows how respondents manage emotional and behavioural

disturbance from their personal level. It turn out that higher (44%) proportion of

respondents said they handle that by confiding in people they truly trust; (20%) stated

they handle that by self-motivation and control; (16%) of the respondents reads the bible

and meditate; (8%) respondents at the same time shift their attention from the situation

and by listening to music and imagining good things whereas few (4%) of the

respondents focus their attention on the work and leaving personal problems behind.

When respondents were asked how hospital management team can do to handle

emotional and behavioural disturbances at work. It was suggest by the participants that;

all staff should at least visit the mental health once a month; some also said that there

should be a continues training on organisational and behavioural science and by creating

special counseling unit in the hospital; management of the hospital should employ a

clinical psychologist; there should be a periodic screening by providing counseling to

persons involved, there should be in-service training to create more awareness among the

staff; there should be regular staff durbar to voice out feelings and management should

trust in the competence of all staff in the hospital.

5.1 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The study found that vast majority (88%) of respondents had ever experienced emotional

and behavioural disturbances. Some of the causes of these emotional and behavioral

disturbances were both from home and at the work place as well. Causes of emotional

and behavioural disturbances from work as indicated by respondents were, workload and

stress, poor management, lack of motivation and poor remuneration, mood swings and

personality type, work related conflict and insecurity. The causes from home were

relationship and marital issues, family problems, disappointments, financial problems and

loss of loved one. Majority of respondents affirmed that emotional and behavioural

disturbances at home can affect work output.

With respect to the negative effects of emotional and behavioural disturbances on work

output, vast majority (92%) of those who took part in the study attested that emotional

and behavioural disturbance have effects on work output in the hospital. These effects

indicated according to the study were, lower quality of care and professional satisfaction,

difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or remembering, ineffectual job performance,

poor customer care and problems in work relationship, decreased interest or involvement
in work and decline in dependability. With this majority (72%) of the respondents agreed

that there is the tendency to carry negative emotions from home to work.

Regarding the ways of managing emotional and behavioural disturbances among health

workers in the hospital; the study revealed that more than half (56%) of the respondents

affirmed that there are avenues for managing emotional and behavioural disturbance in

the hospital. The department/persons responsible for managing emotional and

behavioural disturbances in the hospital were the mental health unit, the chaplaincy and

the human resource unit. Again majority (62%) of the respondents said they repose

confidence in their service in the hospital. It was also found that individuals have their

own way of managing emotional and behavioural disturbances. There is therefore the

need for continuous training on organisational and behavioural science and the facility

should consider employing a clinical psychologist or counselling psychologist. From the

results obtained from the survey, it can be inferred that emotional and behavioural

disturbances has negative impact on work output of among health workers in Father

Thomas Allan Rooney Memorial hospital in Asankrangwa in the Western Region of

Ghana.

5.2 RECOMMENDATIONS

The following recommendations are made following the findings of the study;

1. There should be Counselling Psychologists in Father Thomas Alan Rooney

Memorial Hospital, and in extension all healthcare facilities

2. There should be periodic mental health screening for health workers in Father

Thomas Alan Rooney Memorial Hospital

 3. Management of the Hospital should find better ways of dealing with conflict

situations at the hospital.

4. There should be strong and effective psychological support system in the hospital

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 APPENDIX 1

QUESTIONNAIRE

The questionnaire is designed to study the 'impact of emotional and behavioural

disturbances on work output of health workers in Fr. Thomas Allan Rooney Memorial
Hospital, Asankrangwa (Western Region- Ghana).' This is purely an academic exercise
and your anonymity is guaranteed. Kindly indicate your answer(s) by ticking (√) in the
bracket provided and fill in the spaces where necessary.

Section A: Background Information

1. Sex: a) Male [ ] b) Female [ ]
2. Marital status: a) Married [ ] b) Single [ ] c) Co-habitating [ ]
3. Terms of employment: Permanent [ ] contract [ ] causal [ ]
4. Years of service: a) 1-3yrs [ ] b) 4-6yrs [ ] c) 7-9yrs [ ] d) 10-12yrs [ ]
Section B: Causes of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances at work

1. Have you experience any emotional and behavioural disturbances at work before?
a) Yes [ ] b) No [ ]
2. Which of the following are causes of emotional and behavioural disturbances at work?
(Multiple answers allowed)
a) Workload and stress [ ]
b) Poor management [ ]
c) Lack of motivation [ ]
d) Poor remuneration [ ]
e) Mood swings and personality type [ ]
f) Work related conflicts [ ]
g) Insecurity [ ]
h) Discrimination [ ]
3. Which of the following do you think are causes of emotional and behavioural
disturbances at home? (Multiple answers allowed)
a) Relationship and marital issues [ ]
b) Family issues [ ]
c) Financial problems [ ]
d) Loss of loved one [ ]
e) Disappointments [ ]
4. Do you think these (Question 4 above) can affect work output? a) Yes [ ] b) No [ ] c)
don’t know [ ]
Section C: Negative Effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances on Work
output
1. Emotional and behavioural disturbances have negative effects on work output.
a) Agree [ ] b) Disagree [ ] c) Neutral [ ]
2. Which of the following are the effects of emotional and behavioural disturbances at
work?
(Multiple answers allowed)
a) Lower quality of care and professional satisfaction [ ]
b) Difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or remembering [ ]
c) Ineffectual job performance [ ]
d) Poor customer care and problems in work relationship [ ]
e)Decreased interest or involvement in work [ ]
f) Decline in dependability [ ]
h) Frequent late arrivals [ ]
3. There is the tendency to carry negative emotions from home to work.
a) Agree [ ] b) Disagree [ ] c) Neutral [ ]
Section D: Ways of Managing Emotional and Behavioural Disturbances among
Health Workers
1. Are there avenues for managing emotional and behavioural disturbance in this
hospital?
a) Yes [ ] b) No [ ] c) don’t know [ ]
2. If yes, which department/ Persons are responsible?
…………………………………………………………..
3. Do you repose trust/confidence in the unit/Person responsible?
a) Yes [ ] b) No [ ] c) don’t know [ ]
4. There should be periodic mental health screening for staff in the hospital
a) Agree [ ] b) Disagree [ ] c) Neutral [ ]
5. From your personal level how do you always manage emotional and behavioural
disturbance?
………………………………………………………………………………………………
….
6. What do you think can be done by the hospital management team to emotional and
behavioural disturbances at work?
………………………………………………………………………………………………
….
………………………………………………………………………………………………
….