The mental health of hospital nurses in Tasmania as measured by the 12-item General Health Questionnaire

Among a sample of 270 nurses who completed the General Health Questionnaire a third had scores to indicate 'caseness'. Using principal component analysis three dimensions emerged which accounted for 64% of the variance. Preliminary findings indicate that nurses working in medical, psychiatric, surgical and pool/on call settings, in that order, had much higher rates of 'caseness' compared to their colleagues in other work settings.