Introduction and aim. Health professionals are most vulnerable to stress and burnout. The study aimed to analyse the influence of the length of service on the incidence of stress among nurses of Professor Witold Orłowski Independent Public Clinical Hospital in Warsaw. Material and methods. A total of 100 nurses, women constituted 100% of all. Mean age: 39.3 years (SD = 15.22, min. 24, max. 60). Mean length of service was 16.2 years (SD = 9.73, min. 1, max. 37). A voluntary and anonymous questionnaire study, the following research tools: Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Inventory for Measuring Coping with Stress (Mini Cope), and original questionnaire. Statistical analysis: STATISTICA 12.5 licensed to Warsaw Medical University, Kruskal-Wallis statistical test, α < 0.05. Results. Most study participants (84%) said that stress was an intrinsic part of the nursing profession and working under pressure of time as well as the responsibility for the life and health of patients were among the most significant stress factors. 56% of the respondents said that nurses often faced violence and mobbing (58%). 65% of the study participants experienced back pain due to stress. 31% of the nurses took action to reduce stress. According to 65% of the total smoking was the most popular way of dealing with stress. Conclusions. The study group of nurses demonstrated a medium level of stress and nurses with shorter length of service experienced stress significantly more often. In difficult situations at work the nurses used constructive ways of dealing with stress, including an analysis of a problem and development of specific actions to resolve the issue. To release stress related to work, the nurses chose negative ways of coping with stress such as smoking and overeating. They also had little knowledge of stress management techniques.

Key words: stress, burnout, nurses.