Spousal support, work-family conflict, and career satisfaction as predictors of quality of life among working mothers in healthcare settings

Objective: This study examined whether spousal support, work-family conflict, and career satisfaction predict quality of life among working mothers in healthcare settings across Ibadan, Nigeria. Methods: The research adopted a cross-sectional survey design and utilised a purposive and convenience sampling procedure to select 391 working mothers from five major hospitals within Ibadan, Nigeria. Data were collected using Spousal Support Scale, Work-Family Conflict Scale, Career Satisfaction Scale, and WHOQOL-BREF. Descriptive statistics summarised socio-demographic variables, while Pearson correlation and multiple regression analyses tested the hypotheses using SPSS v27.Results: Spousal support significantly and positively predicted quality of life (p<0.001), whereas career satisfaction negatively predicted quality of life (p<0.001). Work-family conflict was not a significant predictor. Logistic regression showed that professional certificate holders [odds ratio (OR)=0.20, p=0.039)] and postgraduate degree holders (OR=0.22, p=0.005) had lower odds of reporting a high quality of life compared with the reference education group. Similarly, support staff (OR=0.42, p=0.007) and working mothers with irregular work schedules (OR=0.54, p=0.021) were less likely to report a high quality of life. Conclusion: These findings suggest that spousal support enhances well-being, while unresolved work-family tensions, job roles and irregular work demands may diminish it.