Journal of occupational and environmental medicine最新文献

Objective: Develop and validate a multidimensional tool consistent with an expanded occupational safety and health (OSH) paradigm.

Methods: Systematic development process; cross-sectional survey design for psychometric properties. Exploratory factor analyses (EFA) and reliability estimates on key theoretical constructs.

Results: The Organic Farmer Safety, Health & Life Questionnaire (OFSHLQ) is a population-specific, theory-based, multilevel tool that integrates work and life dimensions. The development process contributed to face and content validity. The EFA identified 11 scales with acceptable factor loadings. Reliability estimates across scales ranged from 0.58 to 0.92.

Discussion: OFSHLQ integrates traditional dimensions of OSH and other intrapersonal, interpersonal, and contextual factors that contribute to overall workers' health and well-being.

Conclusion: OFSHLQ constitutes a resource for traditional OSH surveillance and research, and is also consistent with an expanded paradigm of OSH.

Objectives: To test the hypothesis of a beneficial role of worker participation in the decision-making process as a buffer against demanding work organisation on mental and physical health and commitment.

Methods: A cross-sectional study (N = 1134) was conducted among workers employed in the health and homecare sector. Multiple regressions and moderation analyses were performed to test whether worker participation in decision-making moderates the association between demanding work organisation and health and whether it directly predicts work commitment.

Results: As hypothesized, results show that demanding work organisation is negatively associated with the mental and physical health of workers and that participation in the decision-making moderates this negative association. Finally, participation in decision-making is directly related to work commitment.

Conclusions: Results are discussed in light of the recent evolution of work conditions in the health and homecare sector.

Objective: This study explored the association between symptoms of male menopause and presenteeism among middle-aged men in Japan.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 3,795 men aged 40 to 59 years who were in current employment in Japan. Male menopause symptoms were assessed using the Aging Male Symptoms (AMS) scale. Presenteeism was measured with the Work Functioning Impairment Scale (WFun). Poisson regression analysis was conducted.

Results: The prevalence of presenteeism increased with increasing total AMS scale score (p for trend <0.001). Severe AMS scale group showed prevalence ratio of 11.81 (95% confidence interval: 9.45-14.74) compared to no symptoms group. Each subscale demonstrated a dose-response relationship when evaluated independently.

Conclusions: We identified a strong association between male menopause symptoms and presenteeism. Addressing these symptoms, particularly the psychological and physical symptoms, in the workplace could reduce presenteeism.

Objective: To identify gaps in nonfatal injury and illness (NII) reporting between physicians and other occupations.

Methods: Bureau of Labor Statistics data (2011-2019) were analyzed, comparing annualized NII incidence rates using incidence rate ratios (IRR), with physicians as the reference.

Results: Between 2011-2019, physicians reported significantly lower NII rates compared to high-hazard non-medical occupations (IRR 17.2-70.8, all p < 0.01) and most low-hazard non-medical occupations (IRR 1.2-6.3, all p < 0.01), except lawyers. NII rates among physicians were also lower than those in non-physician medical occupations (IRR 1.4-27.6, all p < 0.01). In 2020, relative NII rates between physicians and non-physician medical occupations decreased but returned to pre-pandemic levels by 2021.

Conclusions: Physicians report significantly lower NII rates than other occupations, likely due to underreporting or undercounting, highlighting a potential gap in occupational injury data.

Objective: Concern about psychiatric injuries for first responders has grown. We examine alternatives to workers' compensation (WC).

Method: We conducted 15 interviews across 5 California departments contracted with non-WC mental health (MH) providers. We performed content analysis.

Results: MH support outside of WC most often was a dedicated contract with outside MH providers for assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Departments had formal financing mechanisms with union and city support designating funding for MH care. Frustration and past WC experiences drove the desire for WC alternatives. First responders reported high levels of stigma associated with MH care. Compared to WC, these alternatives allowed more comprehensive services to injured workers along with ease of accessing care, expediting the healing process.

Conclusion: Contracting culturally competent MH providers outside of WC for first responders has potential and needs formal evaluation.

Objective: The aim of the study is to examine the impact of working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic on general health, stress, work-family, and family-work conflict over-time and identify differences by gender and parental status.

Methods: Trajectory analyses described outcomes over time. Multinomial logistic regression relates the effects of gender, children, and the interaction between them, on group membership based on the latent class growth analyses.

Results: Not all trajectories followed the expected cubic pattern. Females had less family-work conflict (high/low: OR = 0.29, 95% CI: 0.17-0.66; moderate/low OR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.20-0.67). Children increased the odds of family-work conflict (high/low: OR = 8.48, 95% CI: 3.38-21.25; moderate/low OR = 2.98, 95% CI: 1.63-5.43). Work-family conflict was worse for those with children (high-to-moderate decline/low-stable: OR = 2.59, 95% CI 1.25-5.41).

Conclusions: Work from home has implications for health and well-being of employees with differences based on gender and parental status for stress, work-family, and family-work conflict.

Background: Our objective was to deliver actionable, worksite-specific COVID-19 risk assessments and mitigation strategies tailored to vulnerable workers in one of the highest-risk areas in the US.

Methods: Four trained, bilingual (English/Spanish) community health workers (CHWs) recruited small businesses (ie, ≤20 employees) across various industries and executed novel on-site infectious disease risk assessment surveys of at least one employer and one employee.

Results: Of 102 participating businesses (95% Hispanic-owned), 96% were characterized as "high risk" or "very high risk" for disease transmission. All businesses reported implementing at least one practice to reduce disease transmission; however, almost half of businesses lacked at least 13 of the 17 controls identified to mitigate risk.

Conclusions: Tailored, culturally sensitive outreach led by CHWs identified and educated businesses on critical hazards, and these methods may be transferable to similar communities.

Objective: Investigate new bus operators' ( N = 293) occupational and health backgrounds to inform how transit authorities can support their future health and job success.

Methods: New bus operators completed surveys and direct measurements that addressed demographics, work history, and 10 health risk factors.

Results: Participants averaged 42.76 years of age and were predominantly male (73.5%). Many (45.7%) came from minority backgrounds and most (66.3%) had no prior commercial driving experience. Transportation and material moving occupations were operators' most common prior jobs followed by protective service, and sales and related occupations. Study-specific criteria classified operators as having low (49.5%), medium (37.9%), and high (12.6%) health risk levels.

Conclusions: About half of the sample had medium-to-high health risks and most lacked commercial driving experience. Such information may help employers proactively support new bus operators' health and job success.

Objective: The work environment during work from home (WFH) may have a negative impact on workers' health. We investigated the effects of the physical work environment during WFH on sleep.

Methods: We conducted a 1-year cohort study of 2099 Japanese WFH workers. We used eight questions about the physical work environment during WFH as independent variables and the Athens Insomnia Scale as the dependent variable. We performed multilevel logistic regression with residence as a random effect.

Results: With the exception of one item, nonconformity with recommendations for the physical work environment during WFH was significantly associated with sleep problems. Further, the number of nonconformities and sleep problems showed a graded relationship.

Conclusion: An inappropriate physical work environment during WFH may be associated with sleep problems.

Objectives: The aims of the study are to assess the effect of occupational exposure to isoflurane on the sperm quality of mice and to investigate whether cessation of exposure can restore seminal quality.

Methods: Mice were exposed to 50 ppm of isoflurane for 5 hours per day over a 30-day period. Following this exposure, they were euthanized at predetermined postexposure intervals, and their sperm samples were analyzed for kinetics and viability parameters.

Results: Occupational exposure to isoflurane can adversely affect sperm at 50 ppm, a concentration deemed safe by international occupational health conventions in some countries. These effects are marked by oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and genomic damage, alongside alterations in sperm kinetics and acrosomal integrity. Furthermore, cessation of exposure does not guarantee restoration of cellular quality.

Conclusions: Isoflurane at 50 ppm, previously deemed safe by some countries, impairs sperm kinetics and viability, potentially directing the spermatogenic process toward infertility and apoptosis.