Objectives The aim of this study was to determine whether sleeping time of working days and the percentage of night shift are associated with nurses' job strain and burnout.

Methods We recruited female nursing staff from district hospitals in Taiwan. We obtained demographic information, working conditions, job content questionnaire (JCQ), and Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) using a self-administered questionnaire, focusing on job strain, personal or generic burnout, work-related burnout, and client-related burnout. A multivariate logistic model was performed. Important confounders such as age, educational level, occupational category, regular excise habit, and major earner of family were adjusted.

Results A total of 1235 nurses responded satisfactorily and were eligible for the final analysis. The adjusted OR for high strain was associated with sleeping ≤5 h per working day and percentage of night shift in last year 10% were 1.59 (95% CI 1.05 to 2.39) and 1.32 (95% CI 1.02 to 1.70). The adjusted OR for high personal or generic burnout due to sleeping ≤5 h per working day was 2.37 (95% CI 1.09 to 6.23). The adjusted OR for high client burnout due to sleeping ≤5 h per working day was 1.86 (95% CI 1.16 to 3.08).

Conclusions This study identifies associations between shorter sleeping h per working day and higher percentage of night shift in last year. In addition, only shorter sleeping time per working day is associated with personal or generic burnout and client-related burnout. Further investigation on how the working conditions of nurses could be improved is warranted.