| 1. |
- Abeysekera, John, et al.
(författare)
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The demands and benefits of ergonomics in Sri Lankan apparel industry
- 2016
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Ingår i: Work. - : IOS Press. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 55:2, s. 255-261
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Apparel exports bring in sizeable foreign income to Sri Lanka. To protect and promote this industry is a paramount need. This can be carried out by applying Human Factors/Ergonomics (HFE) which has proved to control negative effects at work places. This paper reports a case study which describes the demands and benefits of HFE in MAS Holdings which owns a large share of the apparel industry in Sri Lanka.The study consisted of walk through observation survey, a questionnaire survey and ergonomic work place analysis followed by a training programme to selected employees in three companies.Positive responses to questionnaires revealed good ergonomic practices in the work places surveyed. Ergonomically unfit chairs and potential hazards e.g. exposure to noise and hot environment were detected. It is seen that MAS have introduced strategies originated by Toyota Production System viz. 5S, Kaizen, six sigma etc., which are in fact ergonomic methods. A progressive project MAS boast of viz. ‘MAS Operating System’ (MOS) empowers training and development to employees.MAS Holdings has adequately realized the benefits of applying HFE as evident by the number of awards received. Relevant companies were advised to take appropriate corrective measures to control the potential hazards.
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| 2. |
- Andersen, Lars L, et al.
(författare)
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Factors associated with high physical exertion during manual lifting : Cross-sectional study among 200 blue-collar workers
- 2018
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Ingår i: Work. - 1875-9270. ; 59:1, s. 59-66
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: High physical exertion during work is a risk factor for back pain and long-term sickness absence.OBJECTIVE: To investigate which factors are associated with physical exertion during manual lifting.METHODS: From 14 workplaces across Denmark, 200 blue-collar workers reported perceived physical exertion (Borg-CR10) during manual lifting from floor to table height of 5, 10, 20 and 30 kg at the beginning and end of the working day. The workers also responded to a questionnaire and went through testing of isometric back muscle strength. Associations were modelled using logistic regression analysis controlled for various confounders. The outcome was dichotomized into low (0-4) and high (5-10) physical exertion.RESULTS: Gender (OR 8.57 [95% CI 4.46-16.46] for women), load (OR 4.22 [95% CI 3.58-4.97] for each 5-kg increase), back muscle strength (OR 0.43 [95% CI 0.23-0.83] for high), and back pain intensity (OR 2.80 [95% CI 1.43-5.48] for high) were associated with high perceived physical exertion. Age, smoking, Body Mass Index (BMI), and time of the day were not associated with physical exertion.CONCLUSIONS: Gender, load, back muscle strength and back pain influence physical exertion during manual lifting in blue-collar workers. These factors should be considered when planning work with manual lifting for individual workers.
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| 3. |
- Andruškienė, Jurgita, et al.
(författare)
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Psychosocial work experiences related to health : a study of Lithuanian hospital employees
- 2015
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Ingår i: Work. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 53:3, s. 669-677
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Research in the area of workplace health promotion from a salutogenic perspective is lacking in Eastern Europe.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between psychosocial work environment and health from a salutogenic perspective among Lithuanian hospital workers.METHODS: Using a cross-sectional design a questionnaire was distributed to staff in a large hospital in Lithuania. Out of 811 employees, 714 completed the survey: 151 physicians, 449 nurses and 114 other staff members (e.g., psychologists, technicians, therapists). A response rate of 88.0% was achieved. The Work Experience Measurement Scale (WEMS) and the Salutogenic Health Indicator Scale (SHIS) were linguistically adapted and used for the first time in a Lithuanian context. Logistic and multiple linear regression models were used for the analyses.RESULTS: Supportive working conditions, positive internal work experiences and time experience contributed the most to good health, defined as a high SHIS index. Having an executive post was significantly related to good work experiences, i.e. a high WEMS score, while being at the age of 40-54 years was associated with a low WEMS score. Physicians had the highest score on supportive working conditions; while nurses had the lowest scores on autonomy.CONCLUSIONS: A salutogenic approach enables an organisation to identify how to improve working conditions for the employees by focusing on possibilities and resources. Individual activities for workplace health promotion among different work groups seem necessary.
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| 4. |
- Arnetz, Judith E., et al.
(författare)
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Using database reports to reduce workplace violence : Perceptions of hospital stakeholders
- 2015
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Ingår i: Work. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 51:1, s. 51-59
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Documented incidents of violence provide the foundation for any workplace violence prevention program. However, no published research to date has examined stakeholders' preferences for workplace violence data reports in healthcare settings. If relevant data are not readily available and effectively summarized and presented, the likelihood is low that they will be utilized by stakeholders in targeted efforts to reduce violence. OBJECTIVE: To discover and describe hospital system stakeholders' perceptions of database-generated workplace violence data reports. PARTICIPANTS: Eight hospital system stakeholders representing Human Resources, Security, Occupational Health Services, Quality and Safety, and Labor in a large, metropolitan hospital system. METHODS: The hospital system utilizes a central database for reporting adverse workplace events, including incidents of violence. A focus group was conducted to identify stakeholders' preferences and specifications for standardized, computerized reports of workplace violence data to be generated by the central database. The discussion was audio-taped, transcribed verbatim, processed as text, and analyzed using stepwise content analysis. RESULTS: Five distinct themes emerged from participant responses: Concerns, Etiology, Customization, Use, and Outcomes. In general, stakeholders wanted data reports to provide "the big picture," i.e., rates of occurrence; reasons for and details regarding incident occurrence; consequences for the individual employee and/or the workplace; and organizational efforts that were employed to deal with the incident. CONCLUSIONS: Exploring stakeholder views regarding workplace violence summary reports provided concrete information on the preferred content, format, and use of workplace violence data. Participants desired both epidemiological and incident-specific data in order to better understand and work to prevent the workplace violence occurring in their hospital system.
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| 5. |
- Bellini, Diego, et al.
(författare)
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Social support in the company canteen : A restorative resource buffering the relationship between job demands and fatigue
- 2019
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Ingår i: Work. - : IOS PRESS. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 63:3, s. 375-387
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The quality of the places where workers take their breaks may affect the completeness of recovery in the time available. Little is known about how characteristics of a company canteen buffer the relationship between job demands and fatigue. OBJECTIVE: We addressed the possibility that the company canteen buffers the relationship between job demands and fatigue to the extent that workers perceive it to hold restorative quality. Further, we considered how the restorative quality of the canteen signals the provision of organizational support, another job resource thought to buffer the demands-fatigue relationship. METHODS: A questionnaire was completed by 141 male blue collars workers during their lunch break in the factory canteen of an Italian industrial organization. RESULTS: Canteen restorative quality correlated positively with organizational support. In multivariate regression analyses, the demands-fatigue association was weaker among workers who saw greater restorative quality in the canteen. This buffering effect was accounted for by a buffering effect of organizational support. CONCLUSIONS: When settings for rest in the workplace have higher restorative quality, they may better function as job resources in two respects: serving the immediate needs of workers for recovery from job demands, and signaling the interest of the organization in their well-being.
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| 6. |
- Bergman, Caroline, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring communication processes in workplace meetings: A mixed methods study in a Swedish healthcare organization
- 2016
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Ingår i: Work : A journal of Prevention, Assesment and rehabilitation. - : IOS Press. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 54:3, s. 533-541
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: An efficient team and a good organizational climate not only improve employee health but also the health and safety of the patients. Building up trust, a good organizational climate and a healthy workplace requires effective communication processes. In Sweden, workplace meetings as settings for communication processes are regulated by a collective labor agreement. However, little is known about how these meetings are organized in which communication processes can be strengthened. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore communication processes during workplace meetings in a Swedish healthcare organization. METHODS: A qualitatively driven, mixed methods design was used with data collected by observations, interviews, focus group interviews and mirroring feedback seminars. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and conventional content analysis. RESULTS: The communication flow and the organization of the observed meetings varied in terms of physical setting, frequency, time allocated and duration. The topics for the workplace meetings were mainly functional with a focus on clinical processes. Overall, the meetings were viewed not only as an opportunity to communicate information top down but also a means by which employees could influence decision-making and development at the workplace. CONCLUSIONS: Workplace meetings have very distinct health-promoting value. It emerged that information and the opportunity to influence decisions related to workplace development are important to the workers. These aspects also affect the outcome of the care provided. © 2016 - IOS Press and the authors. All rights reserved.
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| 7. |
- Bergman, David, et al.
(författare)
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The effects of dialogue groups on physicians' work environment : A matter of gender?
- 2015
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Ingår i: Work. - : IOS Press. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 52:2, s. 407-417
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Over the past decades, the work environment of physicians has been deteriorating, particularly for female physicians. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we evaluated the effects of dialogue groups on the work environment of physicians in relation to gender. METHODS: Sixty physicians (38 women) at Sachs' Children's Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden, participated in dialogue groups once a month during a period of one year. Assessments of their psychosocial work environment were performed before and after the intervention. RESULTS: At baseline, female physicians experienced their work environment as less satisfactory compared to male physicians. After the intervention, the female physicians perceived improvements in more areas than their male colleagues. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that female physicians at this clinic were disadvantaged in relation to the work environment, but, more importantly, the findings suggest that several of the disadvantages can be reduced. Dialogue groups appear to improve the physicians' work environment and promote gender equality.
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| 8. |
- Bergstrom, Jessica, et al.
(författare)
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Work environment perceptions following relocation to open-plan offices: A twelve-month longitudinal study
- 2015
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Ingår i: Work: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment & Rehabilitation. - 1875-9270. ; 50:2, s. 221-228
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: A workplace's design can have various positive or negative effects on the employees and since the 1970s the advantages and disadvantages of open-plan offices have been discussed. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate perceived health, work environment and self-estimated productivity one month before and at three, six and twelve months after relocation from individual offices to an open-plan office environment. METHODS: Employees from three departments within the same company group and who worked with relatively similar tasks and who were planned to be relocated from private offices to open-plan offices were invited to participate. Questionnaires comprising items from The Salutogenic Health Indicator Scale, The Work Experience Measurement Scale, the questionnaire by Brennan et al. about perceived performance and one question from the Work Ability Index were sent to participants one month before relocation (baseline) to open-plan offices and then at three, six and twelve months after relocation. At baseline, 82 questionnaires were sent out. The response rate was 85%. At the follow-ups 77-79 questionnaires were sent out and the response-rate was 70%-81%. RESULTS: At follow-ups, perceived health, job satisfaction and performance had generally deteriorated. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study indicate that employees' perception of health, work environment and performance decreased during a 12 month period following relocation from individual offices to open-plan offices.
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| 9. |
- Björklund Carlstedt, Anita, 1953-, et al.
(författare)
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A scoping review of the incentives for a prolonged work life after pensionable age and the importance of “bridge employment”
- 2018
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Ingår i: Work. - : IOS Press. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 60:2, s. 175-189
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: With a growing share of older people in almost every population, discussions are being held worldwide about how to guarantee welfare in the immediate future. Different solutions are suggested, but in this article the focus is on the need to keep older employees active in the labor market for a prolonged time.Objective: The aim was to find out and describe the incentives at three system levels for older people 1) wanting, 2) being able, and 3) being allowed to work.Material: The literature search embraced articles from the databases Scopus, PsycInfo, Cinahl, AgeLine and Business Source Premier, from May 2004 until May 2016. After the removal of 507 duplicates, the selection and analysis started with the 1331 articles that met the search criteria. Of these, 58 articles corresponded with the research questions.Method: The design was a ‘scoping review’ of the research area bridge employment and prolonged work life.Results: The results show that most investigations are conducted on individual-level predictors, research on organizational-level predictors is more scattered, and societal-level predictor information is scarce.Conclusions: Attitudes and behavior according to a prolonged work life could be summarized as dependent on good health, a financial gain in combination with flexible alternative working conditions.
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| 10. |
- Björn, Catrine, et al.
(författare)
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Prominent attractive qualities of nurses’ work in operating room departments : a questionnaire study
- 2015
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Ingår i: Work. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 52:4, s. 877-889
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The shortage of nurses in operating room departments (ORs) in Sweden and other countries can lead to reduced capacity and quality in healthcare, as well as more intense work for those on the job. Little is known about what nurses in ORs perceive as crucial for their workplace to be attractive.OBJECTIVE: To capture attractive qualities of nurses work in ORs and to adapt the Attractive Work Questionnaire (AWQ).METHODS: The AWQ, rating attractive qualities of work, were completed by 147 (68%) nurses in four Swedish ORs. Principal Component Analyses were performed to determine the underlying structure of the data.RESULTS: The factors in the area Work conditions were: relations, leadership, equipment, salary, organisation, physical work environment, location, and working hours; in the area Work content: mental work, autonomy and work rate; and in the area Job satisfaction: status and acknowledgement. The Principal Component Analysis showed consistency with the original AWQ. Cronbach’s alpha varied between 0.57-0.90.CONCLUSIONS: The AWQ captured attractive qualities for nurses in ORs, some less discussed regarding nurse retention, i.e. equipment, physical work environment and location. The results suggest that the questionnaire is reliable and valid and can be a useful tool in identifying attractive work.
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