Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Work Tasks (work + task)
Selected AbstractsOn functional motor adaptations: from the quantification of motor strategies to the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders in the neck,shoulder regionACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 2010P. Madeleine Abstract Background:, Occupations characterized by a static low load and by repetitive actions show a high prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD) in the neck,shoulder region. Moreover, muscle fatigue and discomfort are reported to play a relevant initiating role in WMSD. Aims: To investigate relationships between altered sensory information, i.e. localized muscle fatigue, discomfort and pain and their associations to changes in motor control patterns. Materials & Methods:, In total 101 subjects participated. Questionnaires, subjective assessments of perceived exertion and pain intensity as well as surface electromyography (SEMG), mechanomyography (MMG), force and kinematics recordings were performed. Results:, Multi-channel SEMG and MMG revealed that the degree of heterogeneity of the trapezius muscle activation increased with fatigue. Further, the spatial organization of trapezius muscle activity changed in a dynamic manner during sustained contraction with acute experimental pain. A graduation of the motor changes in relation to the pain stage (acute, subchronic and chronic) and work experience were also found. The duration of the work task was shorter in presence of acute and chronic pain. Acute pain resulted in decreased activity of the painful muscle while in subchronic and chronic pain, a more static muscle activation was found. Posture and movement changed in the presence of neck,shoulder pain. Larger and smaller sizes of arm and trunk movement variability were respectively found in acute pain and subchronic/chronic pain. The size and structure of kinematics variability decreased also in the region of discomfort. Motor variability was higher in workers with high experience. Moreover, the pattern of activation of the upper trapezius muscle changed when receiving SEMG/MMG biofeedback during computer work. Discussion:, SEMG and MMG changes underlie functional mechanisms for the maintenance of force during fatiguing contraction and acute pain that may lead to the widespread pain seen in WMSD. A lack of harmonious muscle recruitment/derecruitment may play a role in pain transition. Motor behavior changed in shoulder pain conditions underlining that motor variability may play a role in the WMSD development as corroborated by the changes in kinematics variability seen with discomfort. This prognostic hypothesis was further, supported by the increased motor variability among workers with high experience. Conclusion:, Quantitative assessments of the functional motor adaptations can be a way to benchmark the pain status and help to indentify signs indicating WMSD development. Motor variability is an important characteristic in ergonomic situations. Future studies will investigate the potential benefit of inducing motor variability in occupational settings. [source] Work Design for Flexible Work Scheduling: Barriers and Gender ImplicationsGENDER, WORK & ORGANISATION, Issue 1 2000Ann M. Brewer The purpose of this article is to examine the nature of work design in relation to flexible work scheduling (FWS), particularly in respect to participation by women and men. There is a paucity of research evidence on this topic. Work design, essentially an artefact of enterprise culture, is constructed by the social rules of place, distance and time. Work practices that assume that work tasks are only conducted in the workplace during standard work time in the proximity of co-workers and managers do not, in the main, support FWS. While there is no significant evidence in this study that women and men perceive the barriers differently when considering taking up the option to engage in FWS options, the study addresses the reasons for this using a large survey of the Australian workforce. This article concludes that it is time to redefine these critical work design dimensions, in relation to existing power structures, in order to inject real flexibility into the workplace. [source] Women's perceptions of chemotherapy-induced cognitive side affects on work ability: a focus group studyJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 9-10 2010Fehmidah Munir Aims and objectives., To investigate women's awareness of chemotherapy-induced cognitive changes, their perception of cognitive limitations in carrying out daily tasks and subsequent return to work decisions and perceptions of work ability. Background., Evidence suggests that women diagnosed with breast cancer experience cognitive changes as a consequence of chemotherapy treatment. Although these changes tend to be subtle deficits in memory, concentration and the ability to organise information, there has been no published research identifying how they can impact patient's ability to work and subsequent employment decisions. Design., This was a qualitative study. Method., Data were collected from breast cancer survivors using semi-structured interviews with two focus groups (n = 6, n = 7). Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using template analysis. Results., Data were categorised into four main themes: (1) awareness of cognitive changes during and following chemotherapy, (2) cognitive ability and confidence in return to work, (3) impact of cognitive changes on work ability and (4) information on the cognitive side effects of chemotherapy. Conclusions., The views and experiences of breast cancer survivors towards returning to work and subsequent work ability were affected by chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment. More specifically the appraisal of returning to work and ability to manage work were influenced by three interrelated factors: (1) actual cognitive ability following chemotherapy, (2) awareness of cognitive failures by the women and their families and (3) the subsequent impact on their confidence in carrying out daily tasks including work tasks. Relevance to clinical practice., More information and support is needed to help patients with cancer to manage chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairments in home and workplace. Nurses are increasingly asked about the impact of cancer and its treatment on work and are therefore well positioned to offer this advice. Subsequently, nurses require additional knowledge and guidance to provide this information and support. [source] Work Relationships in Telephone Call Centres: Understanding Emotional Exhaustion and Employee WithdrawalJOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 4 2002Stephen Deery This paper examines the nature of employment and the conditions of work in five telephone call centres in the telecommunications industry in Australia. Call centre work typically requires high levels of sustained interpersonal interaction with customers which can lead to burnout and employee withdrawal. Customer service staff can also become targets of customer hostility and abuse. In addition, this form of work tends to involve extensive employee monitoring and surveillance with little job discretion or variety of tasks. The paper draws upon survey data from 480 telephone service operators to identify the factors that are associated with emotional exhaustion and the frequency of absence amongst the employees. A modelling of the data using LISREL VIII revealed that a number of job and work-setting variables affected the level of emotional exhaustion of employees. These included interactions with the customer, a high workload and a lack of variety of work tasks. Moreover, higher rates of absence were associated with emotional exhaustion. [source] Invisible work, unseen hazards: The health of women immigrant household service workers in SpainAMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 4 2010Emily Q. Ahonen PhD Abstract Background Household service work has been largely absent from occupational health studies. We examine the occupational hazards and health effects identified by immigrant women household service workers. Methods Exploratory, descriptive study of 46 documented and undocumented immigrant women in household services in Spain, using a phenomenological approach. Data were collected between September 2006 and May 2007 through focus groups and semi-structured individual interviews. Data were separated for analysis by documentation status and sorted using a mixed-generation process. In a second phase of analysis, data on psychosocial hazards were organized using the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire as a guide. Results Informants reported a number of environmental, ergonomic and psychosocial hazards and corresponding health effects. Psychosocial hazards were especially strongly present in data. Data on reported hazards were similar by documentation status and varied by several emerging categories: whether participants were primarily cleaners or carers and whether they lived in or outside of the homes of their employers. Documentation status was relevant in terms of empowerment and bargaining, but did not appear to influence work tasks or exposure to hazards directly. Conclusions Female immigrant household service workers are exposed to a variety of health hazards that could be acted upon by improved legislation, enforcement, and preventive workplace measures, which are discussed. Am. J. Ind. Med. 53:405,416, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Profile of cognitive problems in schizophrenia and implications for vocational functioningAUSTRALIAN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY JOURNAL, Issue 4 2009Bhing-Leet Tan Aim:,This literature review attempts to profile specific areas of cognition that have shown unique and consistent evidence of dysfunction among people with schizophrenia. In addition, their impact on vocational functioning is illustrated, so as to highlight the importance of managing these cognitive difficulties in vocational rehabilitation. Methods:,Literature search was carried out on seven key cognitive domains identified by the National Institute of Mental Health in the USA. Their impact on vocational function was also reviewed. Results:,It is found that attention, declarative and working memory, reasoning, problem-solving and social cognition are areas of impairment that have great impact on vocational functioning. Attention and memory problems affect learning of new work tasks. Executive function is particularly crucial in determining supported and open employment outcomes, as executive dysfunction cannot be easily compensated. Lastly, social cognition plays a major role in determining the success of workplace social exchanges. Conclusion:,Occupational therapists need to have a good understanding of the profile of cognitive problems among people with schizophrenia, in order to tailor our intervention according to their cognitive strengths and difficulties. Several cognitive remediation strategies and programs have been designed specifically for people with mental illness. Equipping ourselves with skills in conducting such programs will augment our expertise in vocational rehabilitation. [source] Prompting procedures as establishing operations for escape-maintained behaviorBEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS, Issue 1 2006Jennifer L. Crockett In the current study, we report on a young man with Nager's Syndrome, mild mental retardation, and deafness who exhibited severe problem behavior during demand situations. Initial functional analysis suggested that problem behavior was maintained by gaining escape from instructional demands. However, further analysis suggested that the individual was responding to escape the prompting procedure rather than the work tasks themselves. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Evaluation of current densities and total contact currents in occupational exposure at 400 kV substations and power linesBIOELECTROMAGNETICS, Issue 3 2009Leena H. Korpinen Abstract This investigation studied the current densities in the neck and total contact currents in occupational exposure at 400 kV substations and power lines. Eight voluntary workers simulated their normal work tasks using the helmet,mask measuring system. In all, 151 work tasks with induced current measurements were made. Work situations were: tasks in 400 kV substations, tasks in 400,110 kV towers and the cutting of vegetation under 400 kV power lines. The average current density in the neck was estimated from the current induced in the helmet. The calculated maximum average current densities in the neck varied from 1.5 to 6.4 mA/m2 and the maximum total contact currents from 66.8 to 458.4 µA. The study shows that the maximum average current densities and the total contact currents (caused by electric field) in occupational exposure at 400 kV substations and power lines does not exceed the limit and action values (10 mA/m2 and 1 mA) of the new EU-directive 2004/40/EC (live-line bare-hand works excluded). Bioelectromagnetics 30:231,240, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] | |||||||||||||