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- Bergström, Gunnar, et al.
(författare)
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A comprehensive workplace intervention and its outcome with regard to lifestyle, health and sick leave : the AHA study
- 2008
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Ingår i: Work. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 31:2, s. 167-180
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study is a prospective multicentre cohort study entitled Work and Health in the Processing and Engineering Industries, the AHA Study (AHA is the Swedish abbreviation for the study). Four large workplaces in Sweden participated during the years from 2000 to 2003. The present report has two objectives: (1) to present a comprehensive occupational health intervention programme and (2) to evaluate this programme with a focus on lifestyle (smoking and exercise), health related quality of life (HRQoL) and sick leave. Interventions were provided on an individual and group level, including evidence-based methods for four health/focus areas (individual level) and a group intervention based on a survey-feedback methodology. The analyses in this report were exclusively employed at an organizational level. The proportion of smokers decreased at three companies and the course of the HRQoL was advantageous at two of the companies as compared to a gainfully employed reference group. A significant decrease in sick leave was revealed at one company, whereas a break in an ascending sick-leave trend appeared at a second company as compared to their respective corporate groups. This comprehensive workplace intervention programme appears to have had positive effects on smoking habits, HRQoL and sick leave.
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| 4. |
- Lundh, Karin, et al.
(författare)
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Ageing and wear in polymeric child articles
- 2008
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Rapport (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ageing and wear in polymeric child articles This report targets child use and care articles, toys and playground equipment. These products will in this report collectively be referred to as ‘child articles’. It is the authors’ experience that polymers are getting more and more frequent in child articles, probably since they are cheaper and in many ways easier to process than metals. This is not an unwanted development in itself, but the choice of material has to be carefully made since the material properties of polymers vary greatly depending on the type and amount of additives and this can not be assessed visually. In addition they degrade with time due to environmental influence. To verify the properties of a polymer the material has to be tested. One of the challenges with polymers is that they all have a limited lifetime. They degrade over time and might lose almost all their strength, leading to material failure and, in the worst case scenario, accidents. It is a fact that accidents happen due to material failure, although it is hard to trace the true cause in accident statistics. In this report the term ‘ageing’ will be used for chemical degradation of the material structure due to light and/or heat exposure and ‘wear’ refers to mechanical degradation as a result of mechanical stress and contact. The current regulation covers property changes in polymers during the lifetime of a product insufficiently, if at all. Ageing of materials is virtually non-existing in existing child article standards. During its life a product is subjected to all kinds of environmental factors which more or less lead to reduction of function of the product. All products get worn, in one way or another, when used and the surrounding environment affects the material of the product. These effects are greater or lesser depending on usage and the harshness of the surrounding environment, as well as material choice and other qualities of the product. Therefore the material and processing have to be chosen based on the knowledge of the environment in which the product will be used as well as the expected lifetime. This process is called environmental design or environmental engineering. In order to simplify the material selection process when a product is developed, it is recommended to compose a material qualification system for child articles. This system can preferably be based on existing systems from other industries. This study recommends that the requirements and test methods proposed in Chapter 5 are considered when new standards for child articles are being developed or when existing standards are being revised. It is also recommended to perform a risk analysis to identify the hazards of a product.
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| 5. |
- Mandenius, Carl-Fredrik, 1954-, et al.
(författare)
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Monitoring of influenza virus hemagglutinin in process samples using weak affinity ligands and surface plasmon resonance
- 2008
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Ingår i: Analytica Chimica Acta. - : Elsevier. - 0003-2670 .- 1873-4324. ; 623, s. 66-75
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was used to screen the interaction between a variety of affinity ligands and hemagglutinin (HA) from human influenza virus, with the aim of identifying low affinity ligands useful for the development of a rapid bioanalytical sensor. Three sialic acid-based structures and four lectins were evaluated as sensor ligands. The sialic acid-based ligands included a natural sialic acid-containing glycoprotein, human α1-acid glycoprotein (α1-AGP), and two synthetic 6′-sialyllactose-conjugates, with varying degree of substitution. The interaction of HA with the four lectin-based ligands, concanavalin A (Con A), wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), Maackia amurensis lectin (MAL), and Sambucus nigra agglutinin (SNA), showed a wide variation of affinity strengths. Affinity and kinetics data were estimated. Strong affinities were observed for Con A, WGA, α1-AGP, and a 6′-sialyllactose-conjugate with a high substitution degree, and low affinities were observed for MAL and a 6′-sialyllactose-conjugate with low substitution. The main objective, to identify a low affinity ligand which could be used for on-line monitoring and product quantification, was met by a 6′-sialyllactose–ovalbumin conjugate that had 0.6 mol ligand per mol carrier protein. The apparent affinity of this ligand was estimated to be 1.5 ± 0.03 μM (KD) on the SPR surface. Vaccine process samples containing HA were analyzed in the range 10–100 μg HA mL−1 and correlated with single-radial immunodiffusion. The coefficient of variation on the same chip was between 0.010 and 0.091.
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| 7. |
- Peterson, Ulla, et al.
(författare)
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Burnout and physical and mental health among Swedish healthcare workers
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Advanced Nursing. - : Wiley. - 0309-2402 .- 1365-2648. ; 62:1, s. 84-95
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aim. This paper is a report of a study to investigate how burnout relates to self-reported physical and mental health, sleep disturbance, memory and lifestyle factors. Background. Previous research on the possible relationship between lifestyle factors and burnout has yielded somewhat inconsistent results. Most of the previous research on possible health implications of burnout has focused on its negative impact on mental health. Exhaustion appears to be the most obvious manifestation of burnout, which also correlates positively with workload and with other stress-related outcomes. Method. A cross-sectional study was conducted, using questionnaires sent to all employees in a Swedish County Council (N = 6118) in 2002. The overall response rate was 65% (n = 3719). A linear discriminant analysis was used to look for different patterns of health indicators and lifestyle factors in four burnout groups (non-burnout, disengaged, exhausted and burnout). Results. Self-reported depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance, memory impairment and neck- and back pain most clearly discriminated burnout and exhausted groups from disengaged and non-burnout groups. Self-reported physical exercise and alcohol consumption played a minor role in discriminating between burnout and non-burnout groups, while physical exercise discriminated the exhausted from the disengaged group. Conclusion. Employees with burnout had most symptoms, compared with those who experienced only exhaustion, disengagement from work or no burnout, and the result underlines the importance of actions taken to prevent and combat burnout.
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| 8. |
- Peterson, Ulla, et al.
(författare)
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Reflecting peer-support groups in the prevention of stress and burnout : randomized controlled trial
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Advanced Nursing. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0309-2402 .- 1365-2648. ; 63:5, s. 506-516
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AIM: This paper is a report of a study to test the effect of participating in a reflecting peer-support group on self-reported health, burnout and on perceived changes in work conditions.BACKGROUND: Stress-related conditions are one of the most common causes for long-term sick-leave. There is limited evidence for the effectiveness of person-directed interventions aimed at reducing stress levels in healthcare workers. Prior research in the relationship between support and burnout show somewhat inconsistent results.METHOD: A randomized controlled trial with peer-support groups as the intervention was conducted with 660 healthcare workers scoring above the 75th percentile on the exhaustion dimension of the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory. One hundred and fifty-one (22.9%) agreed to participate. The intervention started in 2002 with 51 participants (96.1% were women), 80 of whom constituted the control group. Potential differences in outcome measures 12 months after the intervention were compared using ancova, and data collected was completed in 2004. Qualitative content analyses were used to analyse reported experiences from group participation.RESULTS: Statistically significant intervention effects were found for general health, perceived quantitative demands at work, participation and development opportunities at work and in support at work. Seven categories of experiences from participating were identified: talking to others in a similar situation, knowledge, sense of belonging, self-confidence, structure, relief of symptoms and behavioural change.CONCLUSION: Peer-support groups using a problem-based method could be a useful and comparatively inexpensive tool in alleviating work-related stress and burnout.
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| 9. |
- Peterson, Ulla, et al.
(författare)
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Work characteristics and sickness absence in burnout and nonburnout groups : a study of Swedish health care workers
- 2008
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Ingår i: International Journal of Stress Management. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 1072-5245 .- 1573-3424. ; 15:2, s. 153-172
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to search for constellations of work characteristics that discriminate people who experience burnout from those who do not, and also from those who score high in exhaustion but not in disengagement, and vice versa. The study is based on data from 3,719 employees in a County Council in Sweden. Discriminant analysis revealed that four burnout categories (nonburnout, disengaged, exhausted, and burnout) related in different ways to self-reported work characteristics. The proportions of respondents with overtime, sickness absence, and sickness presence were higher in the burnout and the exhausted groups compared with the nonburnout group. The most common professions in the burnout group were, unexpectedly, dental nurses, secretaries, and service staff.
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