• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.329-337
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• 2015

Background: The aim of this study is to examine the prevalence of musculoskeletal complaints in Swiss operating room (OR) nurses, and to investigate how work-family conflict, work interruptions, and influence at work are related to lumbar and cervical back pain. Methods: Participants in this correlational questionnaire study included 116 OR nurses from eight different hospitals in Switzerland. Results: We found that 66% of the OR staff suffered from musculoskeletal problems. The most prevalent musculoskeletal complaints were lumbar (52.7%) and cervical pain (38.4%). Furthermore, 20.5% reported pain in the mid spine region, 20.5% in the knees and legs, and 9.8% in the hands and feet. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that work-family conflict (p < 0.05) and interruptions (p < 0.05) significantly predicted lumbar and cervical pain in OR nurses, while influence at work (p < 0.05) only predicted lumbar pain. Conclusion: These results suggest that reducing the work-family conflict and interruptions at work, as well as offering opportunities to influence one's workplace, help to promote OR nurses' health.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2020

Background: As the impact of climate change intensifies, exposure to heat stress will grow, leading to a loss of work capacity for vulnerable occupations and affecting individual labor decisions. This study estimates the future work capacity under the Representative Concentration Pathways 8.5 scenario and discusses its regional impacts on the occupational structure in the Republic of Korea. Methods: The data utilized for this study constitute the local wet bulb globe temperature from the Korea Meteorological Administration and information from the Korean Working Condition Survey from the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute of Korea. Using these data, we classify the occupations vulnerable to heat stress and estimate future changes in work capacity at the local scale, considering the occupational structure. We then identify the spatial cluster of diminishing work capacity using exploratory spatial data analysis. Results: Our findings indicate that 52 occupations are at risk of heat stress, including machine operators and elementary laborers working in the construction, welding, metal, and mining industries. Moreover, spatial clusters with diminished work capacity appear in southwest Korea. Conclusion: Although previous studies investigated the work capacity associated with heat stress in terms of climatic impact, this study quantifies the local impacts due to the global risk of climate change. The results suggest the need for mainstreaming an adaptation policy related to work capacity in regional development strategies.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.66-70
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• 2023

Background: Online teaching and learning extend the duration of using gadgets such as mobile phones and tablets. A prolonged usage of these gadgets in a static position can lead to musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). Therefore, this study aims to identify the risk factors related to musculoskeletal symptoms while using gadgets during work from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A cross-sectional survey with online-based questionnaires was collected from the University of Indonesia, consisting of lecturers, students, and managerial staff. The minimum number of respondents was 1,080 and was defined by stratified random sampling. Furthermore, the dependent variable was musculoskeletal symptoms, while the independent were age, gender, job position, duration, activity when using gadgets, and how to hold them. Result: Most of the respondents had mobile phones but only 16% had tablets. Furthermore, about 56.7% have used a mobile phone for more than 10 years, while about 89.7% have used a tablet for less than 10 years. A multivariate analysis found factors that were significantly associated with MSD symptoms while using a mobile phone, such as age, gender, web browsing activity, work, or college activities. These activities include doing assignments and holding the phone with two hands with two thumbs actively operating. The factors that were significantly associated with MSD symptoms when using tablets were gender, academic position, social media activity, and placing the tablet on a table with two actively working index fingers. Conclusion: Therefore, from the results of this study it is necessary to have WFH and e-learning policies to reduce MSD symptoms and enhance productivity at work.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.299-306
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• 2016

Background: Noncompliance of operators with work procedures is a recurrent problem. This human behavior has been said to be situational and studied by many different approaches (ergonomic and others), which consider the noncompliance with work procedures to be obvious and seek to analyze its causes as well as consequences. Methods: The object of the proposed method is to solve this problem by focusing on the performance of work procedures and ensuring improved performance on a continuous basis. Results: This study has multiple results: (1) assessment of the work procedures' performance by a multicriteria approach; (2) the use of a continuous improvement approach as a framework for the sustainability of the assessment method of work procedures' performance; and (3) adaptation of the Stop-Card as a facilitator support for continuous improvement of work procedures. Conclusion: The proposed method emphasizes to put in value the inputs of continuous improvement of the work procedures in relation with the conventional approaches which adopt the obvious evidence of the noncompliance to the working procedures and seek to analyze the cause-effect relationships related to this unacceptable phenomenon, especially in strategic industry.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.112-116
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• 2022

Background/Aims: The Gachon Regional Occupational Cohort Study (GROCS) is a large-scale longitudinal study of occupational safety and health data (covering Work Environment Monitoring, Workers' Health Surveillance, and Occupational Health Service) conducted by the Gachon University Gil Medical Center (GUGMC) in Incheon, Republic of Korea. We conducted GROCS to identify the health effects of workers' occupational risks, behavior, socioeconomic status, and life style. Methods: The GROCS includes data from Work Environment Monitoring, Workers' Health Surveillance, and Occupational Health Service. The baseline year for all data collection was 2018. Work Environment Monitoring was conducted in 240 companies located in Incheon. General Health Examination and Special Health Examination were performed on 32,725 and 9,504 workers, respectively. Occupational Health Services were provided to 16,883 workers in 171 companies. These data have been collected and operated at an external data management institution and were provided as a retrospective cohort after removing personal identification information. Results: In 2018, the total number of companies was 2,854, among which which 488 special Health Examination, 171 Work Environment Monitoring, and 240 Occupational Health Service. The proportion of companies undergoing Special Health Examination was 17.1%, the proportion of companies undergoing Work Environment Monitoring was 8.4%, and the proportion of Companies undergoing Occupational Health Service was 6.0%. Conclusion: GROCS expects researchers to utilize its useful and reliable resource for occupational health and surveillance with for academic or political purposes to lead to improved workers' health and working environment.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.50-51
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• 2012

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.1-2
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• 2019

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.208-212
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• 2016

Background: Outdoor workers are at risk of high ultraviolet radiation exposure, and may have difficulty using sun protection. The objectives were to determine the prevalence of sun protection behaviors in a sample of outdoor construction workers, and to assess which factors predict better sun protection practices. Methods: Participants were recruited via construction unions. Workers answered a questionnaire on demographics, skin cancer risk, sun protection behaviors, and job. Sun protection behavior scores (from questions on sunscreen use, sleeved shirt, hat, shade seeking, sunglasses) were calculated by converting Likert-scale answers to scores from 0 to 4, and taking the mean (separately for work and leisure). Determinants of sun protection behavior scores were examined for work and leisure using generalized linear models. Results: Seventy-seven workers had complete questionnaire data (participation 98%). Sun protection behaviors used most often were hats (79% often/always) and sleeved shirts (82% often/always); least prevalent were shade-seeking (8% often/always) and sunscreen (29% often/always). For both work and leisure scores, the strongest predictor was skin type, with fairer-skinned individuals having higher sun protection behavior scores. Workers had higher scores at work than on weekends. Workplaces that required hats and sleeved shirts for safety purposes had higher protection behavior scores. Conclusion: This high-participation rate cohort helps characterize sun protection behaviors among outdoor workers. Workers practiced better sun protection at work than on weekends, suggesting that workplace policies supportive of sun protection could be useful for skin cancer prevention in the construction industry.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.89-93
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• 2017

Background: Rates of overweight and obese Australians are high and continue to rise, putting a large proportion of the population at risk of chronic illness. Examining characteristics associated with preference for a work-based weight-loss program will enable employers to better target programs to increase enrolment and benefit employees' health and fitness for work. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was undertaken at two Australian mining sites. The survey collected information on employee demographics, health characteristics, work characteristics, stages of behavior change, and preference for workplace assistance with reaching a healthy weight. Results: A total of 897 employees participated; 73.7% were male, and 68% had a body mass index in the overweight or obese range. Employees at risk of developing obesity-related chronic illnesses (based on high body mass index) were more likely to report preference for weight management assistance than lower risk employees. This indicates that, even in the absence of workplace promotion for weight management, some at risk employees want workplace assistance. Employees who were not aware of a need to change their current nutrition or physical activity behaviors were less likely to seek assistance. This indicates that practitioners need to communicate the negative effects of excess weight and promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle to increase the likelihood of weight management. Conclusion: Weight management programs should provide information, motivation. and trouble-shooting assistance to meet the needs of at-risk mining employees, including those who are attempting to change and maintain behaviors to achieve a healthy weight and be suitably fit for work.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.421-426
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• 2018

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of shift work on occupational safety in various industrial sectors. The study analyzes the effects of shift work on the health of workers by considering factors such as the workplace environment and welfare. Methods: Focusing on the $4^{th}$ Korean Working Conditions Survey, this study used an ordinary least-square multiple regression analysis. The dependent variable was the annual frequency of injuries reported by workers. Independent variables were categorized as demographic, shift work, workplace environment, and welfare variables. The analysis was conducted on two levels: 1) Shift work and nonshift work groups were compared, and 2) Shift work was compared with fixed and rotating shifts. Results: For the entire group, age, a low level of education, work hours, and daily and dispatch work negatively impacted the frequency of injuries. Shift work was negatively affected by workplace environment and welfare factors. In the shift group, the frequency of injuries was lower than that of regular workers, and the higher the autonomy in the choice of work hours, the lower the frequency of injuries. Furthermore, shift workers in Korea have more extended work hours (49.25 h/week) than other workers (46.34 h/week). Conclusion: Overall, welfare factors such as workplace satisfaction and worke-life balance reduced the frequency of injuries. The effect of shift work was limited, but it was confirmed that shift worker autonomy could reduce the frequency of injuries.