Abstract: Objective: To investigate the current status of operating room nursing staff allocation and workload across China, providing a basis for optimizing operating room nursing resource allocation and improving care quality. Methods: Using multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling, we selected 94 hospitals from 27 provinces across 7 geographic regions. Questionnaires were administered to 4259 operating room nurses, with workload assessed using the NASA Task Load Index, and categorized using latent profile analysis. Results: The bed-to-nurse ratio in tertiary hospital operating rooms was 1:2.81, while in secondary hospitals it was 1:2.47. Significant differences in workload were observed among nurses based on gender, professional title, position, and specialty qualifications (P<0.05). Latent profile analysis categorized nurses' workload into three dimensions: balanced load type (6.08%), frustration-dominated load type (30.22%) and high-level load type (63.70%). Conclusion: China's operating room nursing workforce faces systemic staffing shortages, with nurses experiencing consistently high workloads that vary significantly different. Most practitioners endure physically and mentally demanding work conditions. To safeguard both healthcare professionals' well-being and patient safety, it is recommended to develop tailored staffing strategies and workload management approaches that address the specific characteristics of this occupational group.

Key words: operating room nurse; staff allocation; workload; latent profile analysis