Determinacion de condiciones laborales de los trabajadores de cuatro hospitales de primer nivel y dos de segundo nivel en el departamento del Quindio – Colombia 2012
Thesis
Objective: To determine the working conditions for the staff of four level 1 and two level 2 hospitals in the Quindío department – Colombia 2012.Methods: A cross section study with a sample of 577 workers of the health sector was carried out in four level 1 hospitals and two level 2 hospitals in the Quindío department of Colombia. The study was carried out by collecting demographic data and the application of the following surveys: “National Survey of Working Conditions” from the National Institute of Safety and Hygiene in the Workplace, Spain, in its validated version for the Spanish language: “Irritation Index”. With the goal of analysing the collected information a database based on the content of the valid surveys was created and dynamic tables were created in the Microsoft Excel 2010.Results: 577 hospital workers participated, with 72% made up of female personnel and 28% of male personnel in a ratio of F:M 2:6. Of the total population surveyed 72% are made up from the health care area and 28% from the administrative area. A high perception of ergonomic risk was found (handling loads, 81%, repetitive motion, 91% and forced postures, 49%). The musculoskeletal symptoms shown were; cervical pain 20%, upper back pain 17%, shoulder pain 62%, wrist pain 27% and elbow pain 10%.In the perception of mental load and psychosocial risk factors it was seen that 92% of the workers required a high level of attention in the execution of their tasks, 77% has to perform various tasks at the same time, 52% perform complex tasks, 49% consider necessary to hide their emotions in the workplace, 13% consider their work is excessive, 43% express the need to work fast in performing their tasks, 69% work with very short and strict deadlines, 66% consider that the rhythm of work is determined by temporal deadlines that must be met. On the other side an adequate perception of autonomy (93-94%) in the choosing of method of work, working pace, and prioritization of tasks that need to be completed was found. Interpersonal relationships are generally perceived positively. It was found that 98% receive help from their co workers and 97% claim to have the support of their superiors. As for physical violence in the workplace it was found that 6% has been victim of aggression from strangers in the workplace. Regarding physical health perception 48% refers to an optimal health state, while referring to mental health more frequent occurrences of sleep alteration (20%), feelings of tension (20%), sadness and/or depression (13%), and difficulty to withdraw from work (15%) were found.Discussion: From the studied population a high risk perception of ergonomic risks were found due to forced postures, handling loads and repetitive movement, as well as exposure to biological risks and factors of psychosocial risks.On the other hand it is important to note that the findings show what is reported in the international literature and leave out the importance of reflecting on the need to identify risks, raise awareness in the population and prioritize preventive actions.
