Introduction. The nursing profession is related to a high risk of both physical and psychological workload. Hospital wards differ with regard to the forms of professional activity of nurses. For this reason, the authors made an attempt to evaluate psycho-physical workloads occurring in selected group of nurses working at traumatic and orthopedic operating block. Aim. The aim of the study was to evaluate the psychophysical workload in nurses working at traumatic and surgery operating block Material and methods. In the study 88 nurses in age range 25–55 years actively professionally working in the orthopedic and trauma surgery operating block were examined. The survey method was applied with the use of a questionnaire consisting of 15 questions regarding demographic data, time of professional practice, the position held, as well as the occurrence of specific psychological and physical workload. Results. As many as 65,91% of participating nurses indicated that their work was related to stressful situations. Related symptoms of mental fatigue were headache (60.23%), impaired concentration (43.18%) and sleepiness (38.64%). Symptoms regarding physical loads were felt by over 95% of nurses. It concerned cervical and lumbar spine (69.32%), shoulder joints (12.5%) and elbow joints (11.36%). The lowest frequency of symptoms was observed in group of nurses with shortest time of job seniority 5–10 years (24.14%). Whereas, the frequency of appearance of those symptoms in time ranges of job seniority between 10–15 years and above 15 years was significantly higher (p = 0.027) and it amounted: 66.67% and 65.22%, respectively. Conclusions. The position of nurses at the trauma and orthopedic surgery operating block is connected with numerous psychical and physical workloads. The dominant workload in the psychic sphere is stress, while physical loads are associated with pain ailments in the musculoskeletal system. The frequency of ailments is related to the time of job seniority at operating block.

Key words: nurses, operating block, psychophysical workload, stress.