Probability of health preservation among employees of industrial enterprises, healthcare and educational institutions

Abstract

Introduction. For an integral quantitative assessment of working population health it is reasonable to use “the chance of being healthy” indicator. Objective: The objective of the study is to establish regularities in age trends of “being healthy” chances among various occupational categories and jobs. Materials and methods. Three thousand two hundred forty three healthcare, industrial enterprise and education workers were surveyed. The assessment criterion is the absence of any chronic cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, musculoskeletal, nervous, genitourinary and dermal system diseases. Chances of being healthy (ChH1) were calculated according to formula: ChH1 (%)= 100 • Ki /K, where: Ki is the number of people in i-age group, who have none of the above-mentioned chronic diseases, К is total number of persons examined in i-age group. Fatigue state duration, as “hours of fatigue per working week”, was used as a physiological equivalent of occupational load. Managing, psychological, hygienic, and non-occupational causes of fatigue and stress among workers were analyzed. Results. The age trend in chances of being healthy in workers employed in three various occupational fields was studied. Regression models “Chances of being healthy – age” were designed for doctors and nurses, working males and females, workers and experts, heads. A change of ChH1 in workers of different age groups, different workloads, and depending on managing, psychological, hygienic, and non-occupational factors was reported. Limitations. The study is limited to considering two indicators, characterizing the chances of being healthy and four groups of fatigue and stress causes (managing, psychological, hygienic, and non-occupational) among workers of three fields of activity: healthcare, industry, and education. Conclusions. Three periods in the age trend of workers’ chances for being healthy, which differ in the level and rate of reducing chances: 20–39 years old, 40–69 y.o. and 70 and over y.o., are distinguished. The annual decrease of chances for being healthy is 1.17% in 25–45-aged healthcare workers, 1.19% in industrial workers, and 0.89% among university employees. The chances of being healthy depend on managing, psychological, hygienic, and non-occupational factors of fatigue and load. A criterion and a scale for assessing the age trend of being healthy chances for workers are suggested.