Search Results (9)

(1) Background: Emergency nurses are more exposed to a wider range of stressors, resulting in higher levels of burnout, reducing the quality of nursing care, and decreasing job satisfaction compared with other peers in other nursing departments. The objective of the current pilot research is to evaluate the efficiency of a transtheoretical coaching model on emergency nurses’ occupational stress management through a coaching intervention. (2) Materials and Methods: An interview, Karasek’s stress questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), an observation grid, and a one-group Pre-test–Post-test questionnaire was carried out to evaluate the changes in emergency nurses’ knowledge and their ability to manage stress before and after attending the coaching intervention. A total of seven emergency room nurses at the proximity public hospital of the Settat area in Morocco have taken part in this study. (3) Results: The results have shown that all emergency nurses were subject to the job strain and iso-strain; four nurses were in moderate burnout, only one nurse was found in high burnout, and two were in low burnout. There was a significant difference between mean Pre- and Post-test scores (p = 0.016). Nurses’ mean score has improved by 2.86 points after attending the four sessions coaching experience, passing from 3.71 in the Pre-test to 6.57 in the Post-test. (4) Conclusions: The coaching intervention through a transtheoretical coaching model could potentially be an efficient strategy for enhancing the nurses’ knowledge and skills in stress management. Full article

Occupational driving of light-duty vehicles (LDVs) became increasingly important in parcel delivery faced with the explosive growth of e-commerce. Since musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) represent the most reported driving-related health problem, we aimed to analyze the risk of low back pain (LBP) and upper-extremity musculoskeletal disorders (UEMSDs) associated with driving LDVs for parcel delivery. In 306 postal workers exposed to driving and 100 unexposed workers, information on occupational driving, physical/psychosocial constraints, and work organization were collected via a questionnaire. MSDs were assessed using the Nordic Questionnaire, 14 additional questions regarding LBP, and a standardized clinical examination for UEMSDs. Statistical modeling consisted of multivariable logistic regression for UEMSDs and the item response theory approach for LBP. UEMSDs were associated with the distance of rural rounds and inversely associated with urban/mixed delivery rounds. Handling heavy loads was associated with LBP, and high physical demands during delivery rounds were related to MSDs. Karasek dimensions and mobbing actions were associated with MSDs. Work recognition, driving training, using an automatic gearbox, and the utilization of additional staff during peak periods were inversely associated with MSDs. Our results suggest that the distance driven in rural settings and high physical demands were associated with MSDs, while some organizational factors could protect from MSDs. Full article

Despite the available literature on the consequences of night shiftwork on stress and food intake, its impact on leptin and ghrelin has never been studied. We previously demonstrated that leptin and ghrelin were biomarkers related to stress, and acute stress-induced a decrease in leptin levels and an increase in ghrelin levels. We performed a prospective observational study to assess the influence of night work, nutrition, and stress on the levels of ghrelin and leptin among emergency healthcare workers (HCWs). We took salivary samples at the beginning of a day shift and/or at the end of a night shift. We also monitored stress using the job demand-control-support model of Karasek. We recorded 24-h food intake during the day shift and the consecutive night shift and during night work and the day before. We included 161 emergency HCWs. Emergency HCWs had a tendency for decreased levels of leptin following the night shift compared to before the dayshift (p = 0.067). Furthermore, the main factors explaining the decrease in leptin levels were an increase in job-demand (coefficient −54.1, 95 CI −99.0 to −0.92) and a decrease in job control (−24.9, −49.5 to −0.29). Despite no significant changes in ghrelin levels between shifts, social support was the main factor explaining the increase in ghrelin (6.12, 0.74 to 11.5). Food intake (kcal) also had a negative impact on leptin levels, in addition to age. Ghrelin levels also decreased with body mass index, while age had the opposite effect. In conclusion, we confirmed that ghrelin and leptin as biomarkers of stress were directly linked to the job demand-control-support model of Karasek, when the main cofounders were considered. Full article

In complex systems such as hospitals, work organization can influence the level of occupational stress and, consequently, the physical and mental health of workers. Hospital healthcare workers were asked to complete a questionnaire during their regular occupational health examination, in order to assess the perceived level of organizational justice, and to verify whether it was associated with occupational stress, mental health, and absenteeism. The questionnaire included the Colquitt Organizational Justice (OJ) Scale, the Karasek/Theorell demand-control-support (DCS) questionnaire for occupational stress, and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12) for mental health. Workers were also required to indicate whether they had been absent because of back pain in the past year. Organizational justice was a significant predictor of occupational stress. Stress was a mediator in the relationship between justice and mental health. Occupational stress was more closely related to perceptions of lack of distributive justice than to perceptions of procedural, informational, and interpersonal justice. Physicians perceived significantly less distributive justice than other workers. In adjusted univariate logistic regression models, the perceptions of organizational justice were associated with a significant reduction in the risk of sick leave for back pain (OR 0.96; CI95% 0.94–0.99; p < 0.001), whereas occupational stress was associated with an increased risk of sick leave (OR 6.73; CI95% 2.02–22.40; p < 0.002). Work organization is a strong predictor of occupational stress and of mental and physical health among hospital employees. Full article

Background: Karasek’s Job Demand-Control-Support model is the gold standard to assess the perception of work; however, this model has been poorly studied among managers. We aimed to explore the perception of work (job demand, control, and support) in managers, and to quantify their risk of job strain (high job demand and low job control) and isostrain (job strain with low job support). Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study on workers from various French companies using the Wittyfit software. Job demand, control, and support were evaluated by self-reported questionnaires, as well as sociodemographic data. Results: We included 9257 workers: 8488 employees (median age of 45 years, median seniority of 10 years, 39.4% women) and 769 managers (463 were more than 45 years old, 343 with more than 10 years of service, 33.3% women). Managers had higher mean ± SD levels than employees in job control (79.2 ± 14.9 vs. 75.4 ± 16.9) and job support (25.2 ± 5.1 vs. 24.0 ± 6.1) (p < 0.001). Compared to employees, managers had a 37% decreased risk of job strain (OR = 0.63, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.77) and a 47% decreased risk of isostrain (OR = 0.53, 95% CI 0.40 to 0.69) (p < 0.001). Workers over age 45 (OR = 1.26, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.40, p < 0.001) and women (OR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.01 to 1. 25, p = 0.03) were at greater risk of job strain. Furthermore, workers over age 45 (OR = 1.51, 95% CI 1.32 to 1.73, p < 0.001), workers with over 10 years of service (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.16 to 1.56, p < 0.001), and women (OR = 1.15, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.31, p = 0.04) were at greater risk of isostrain. Conclusions: Managers seem to have higher autonomy and greater social support and therefore are less at risk of job strain or isostrain than employees. Other factors such as age, seniority, and sex may influence this relationship. Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02596737. Full article

Background: Stress is a significant public health concern that can be self-evaluated using the job control demands model from Karasek. Emergency health care workers are particularly exposed to stress because of the intrinsic characteristics associated with the job (i.e., life-threatening emergencies, overcrowding, lack of bed spaces). However, these attributes have never been studied using the Karasek model. Methods: An observational, prospective, multicentric study in French Emergency Departments will be conducted using a cohort of emergency health care workers. Four questionnaires before a control day and after a nightshift will be assessed every 5 years in the same emergency departments. Also, the Karasek questionnaire, a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory scale, the Hospital Anxiety, Depression Scale, and a food intake questionnaire will be evaluated. Salivary biomarkers (cortisol, immunoglobulin A, lysozyme) will be collected from every emergency health care worker who consents to participating in the study. Conclusion: This study will provide a point of care for the emergency health care workers’ stress situation every 5 years. Ethics: This protocol was registered in Clinical Trials under the identification NCT02401607 after the French Ethics Committee’s approval. Full article

Purpose of the study: Work addiction risk is a growing public health concern with potential deleterious health-related outcomes. Perception of work (job demands and job control) may play a major role in provoking the risk of work addiction in employees. We aimed to explore the link between work addiction risk and health-related outcomes using the framework of job-demand-control model. Methods: Data were collected from 187 out of 1580 (11.8%) French workers who agreed to participate in a cross-sectional study using the WittyFit software online platform. The self-administered questionnaires were the Job Content Questionnaire by Karasek, the Work Addiction Risk Test, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale and socio-demographics. Data Analysis: Statistical analyses were performed using the Stata software (version 13). Results: There were five times more workers with a high risk of work addiction among those with strong job demands than in those with low job demands (29.8% vs. 6.8%, p = 0.002). Addiction to work was not linked to job control (p = 0.77), nor with social support (p = 0.22). We demonstrated a high risk of work addiction in 2.6% of low-strain workers, in 15.0% of passive workers, in 28.9% of active workers, and in 33.3% of high-strain workers (p = 0.010). There were twice as many workers with a HAD-Depression score ≥11 compared with workers at low risk (41.5% vs. 17.7%, p = 0.009). Sleep quality was lower in workers with a high risk of work addiction compared with workers with a low risk of work addiction (44.0 ± 27.3 vs. 64.4 ± 26.8, p < 0.001). Workers with a high risk of work addiction exhibited greater stress at work (68.4 ± 23.2 vs. 47.5 ± 25.1) and lower well-being (69.7 ± 18.3 vs. 49.3 ± 23.0) compared with workers at low risk (p < 0.001). Conclusions: High job demands are strongly associated with the risk of work addiction. Work addiction risk is associated with greater depression and poor quality of sleep. Preventive strategies should benefit from identifying more vulnerable workers to work addiction risk. Full article

Background: The epidemiology of stress on bank workers in Europe is only at the introductory stages. This study investigated for the first time the association between occupational stress level in bank-employees using the BEST8, Karasek-Model and socio-demographic and working factors in Italy. Methods: The observational pilot study involved 384 employees. Three questionnaires were adopted to collect data: Karasek-Model, BEST8 (p < 0.001) and Positivity-Scale. Results: 25% of the sample belonged to high stress group. The workers more stressed were older with a commercial role and consumer of antidepressants/sedatives. Women were much more likely to agree with the perception of feeling unsafe in a possible robbery (OR = 2.42; 95% CI: 1.50–3.91) and with that sales requests were in conflict with one’s own personal moral code (OR = 2.31; 95% CI: 1.38–3.87). Older employees declared feeling inadequate in the workplace (OR = 1.97; 95% CI: 1.07–3.65) and younger employees referred to be anxious about meeting financial budget goals. Workers who had a low positivity had a lower probability of adaptation (OR = 0.88; 95% CI: 0.83–0.93). Conclusions: The occupational stress level in the banking sector involves many aspects: gender, type of bank, role, personal morals, high job-demands, low level of decision-making. This study recommended that banks should implement strategic interventions for well-being of employees, and consequently for their productivity. Full article

As an intermediate endpoint to cardiovascular disease, arterial stiffness has received much attention recently. So far, the research on work stress and arterial stiffness is still sparse and inconsistent, and no investigations on work stress and cardiovascular health among the Thai working population have been reported. Therefore, we conducted an epidemiological study among 2141 Thai enterprise employees (858 men and 1283 women) who were free from any diagnosed cardiovascular disease. Work stress was measured using Karasek’s Job Demand–Control model for job strain (a combination of high demand and low control). Arterial stiffness was evaluated by a non-invasive approach using pulse-wave analysis based on a finger photoplethysmogram. Multivariable linear regression was applied to examine associations between job strain and arterial stiffness. In men, job strain was significantly associated with arterial stiffness (β  =  0.078, 95% confidence interval  =  0.026 to 0.130), after accounting for sociodemographic, behavioral, dietary and biomedical factors. However, the association in women was not significant. As the first study in Thailand on work stress and cardiovascular risk, we found that job strain might be an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease among Thai working men. Further studies with longitudinal design are warranted. Full article