Preventive actions taken by workers after workers' health surveillance: a controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Boschman, J S; Van der Molen, H F; Frings-Dresen, M H W; Sluiter, J K

2013-12-01

To evaluate construction workers' preventive actions and occupational physician's (OPs) recommendations after a job-specific workers' health surveillance (WHS) compared with the currently used generic WHS. After the WHS, the OPs' written recommendations were captured. At the 3-month follow-up, the workers were asked about the preventive actions they had undertaken. A generalized linear mixed model was used to compare proportions of workers. At follow-up, the proportion of workers who reported taking preventive actions was significantly higher in the intervention group (80%, 44/55) than in the control group (67%, 80 of 121), (P = 0.04). In the intervention group, the OPs provided a higher proportion of workers with written recommendations (82%, 63 of 77, vs 57%, 69 of 121; P = 0.03). The job-specific WHS aided OPs in providing workers with recommendations and workers in undertaking (job-specific) preventive actions.

Examining national trends in worker health with the National Health Interview Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Luckhaupt, Sara E; Sestito, John P

2013-12-01

To describe data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), both the annual core survey and periodic occupational health supplements (OHSs), available for examining national trends in worker health. The NHIS is an annual in-person household survey with a cross-sectional multistage clustered sample design to produce nationally representative health data. The 2010 NHIS included an OHS. Prevalence rates of various health conditions and health behaviors among workers based on multiple years of NHIS core data are available. In addition, the 2010 NHIS-OHS data provide prevalence rates of selected health conditions, work organization factors, and occupational exposures among US workers by industry and occupation. The publicly available NHIS data can be used to identify areas of concern for various industries and for benchmarking data from specific worker groups against national averages.

Healing or harming? Healthcare provider interactions with injured workers and insurers in workers' compensation systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Kilgour, Elizabeth; Kosny, Agnieszka; McKenzie, Donna; Collie, Alex

2015-03-01

Healthcare providers (HCPs) are influential in the injured worker's recovery process and fulfil many roles in the delivery of health services. Interactions between HCPs and insurers can also affect injured workers' engagement in rehabilitation and subsequently their recovery and return to work. Consideration of the injured workers' perceptions and experiences as consumers of medical and compensation services can provide vital information about the quality, efficacy and impact of such systems. The aim of this systematic review was to identify and synthesize published qualitative research that focused on the interactions between injured workers, HCPs and insurers in workers' compensation systems in order to identify processes or interactions which impact injured worker recovery. A search of six electronic databases for literature published between 1985 and 2012 revealed 1,006 articles. Screening for relevance identified 27 studies which were assessed for quality against set criteria. A final 13 articles of medium and high quality were retained for data extraction. Findings were synthesized using a meta-ethnographic approach. Injured workers reported that HCPs could play both healing and harming roles in their recovery. Supportive patient-centred interaction with HCPs is important for injured workers. Difficult interactions between HCPs and insurers were highlighted in themes of adversarial relations and organisational pressures. Insurer and compensation system processes exerted an influence on the therapeutic relationship. Recommendations to improve relationships included streamlining administrative demands and increasing education and communication between the parties. Injured workers with long term complex injuries experience difficulties with healthcare in the workers' compensation context. Changes in insurer administrative demands and compensation processes could increase HCP participation and job satisfaction. This in turn may improve injured worker recovery

Listening to community health workers: how ethnographic research can inform positive relationships among community health workers, health institutions, and communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Maes, Kenneth; Closser, Svea; Kalofonos, Ippolytos

2014-05-01

Many actors in global health are concerned with improving community health worker (CHW) policy and practice to achieve universal health care. Ethnographic research can play an important role in providing information critical to the formation of effective CHW programs, by elucidating the life histories that shape CHWs' desires for alleviation of their own and others' economic and health challenges, and by addressing the working relationships that exist among CHWs, intended beneficiaries, and health officials. We briefly discuss ethnographic research with 3 groups of CHWs: volunteers involved in HIV/AIDS care and treatment support in Ethiopia and Mozambique and Lady Health Workers in Pakistan. We call for a broader application of ethnographic research to inform working relationships among CHWs, communities, and health institutions.

Surmounting difficulties to provide home based neonatal care - reflections of community health workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Prabhughate, Abhijit Shrinivas; Tiwari, Pearl; Sohoni, Shubhangi; Morgaonkar, Vallaree Anant; Phatak, Ajay Gajanan; Nimbalkar, Somashekhar Marutirao; Mahajani, Anagha Anand

2018-01-15

In India, community health workers' (CHW) effectiveness in providing home-based neonatal care (HBNC) has been well documented. The nature of challenges faced and strategies adopted while providing HBNC services need to be studied in-depth. A qualitative study to understand the challenges faced and strategies used by Sakhis (women CHW) while providing services as part of a HBNC program implemented by a non-profit organization. Data consisted of 20 in-depth interviews and three focus group discussions (FGD) with Sakhis. Sakhis negotiated with the community to start working as a CHW. They faced challenges while changing behaviors at individual level and also while bringing about a change in harmful normative practices that increased chances of maternal and neonatal mortality. Managing crises at the time of deliveries and facilitating a safe delivery was the most critical challenge faced by many Sakhis. The key strategies used by Sakhis included: proactively and persistently providing services even when they faced resistance from the woman or her family; evolving contextually suitable counseling techniques and tactics to bring about behavioral change; balancing compliance to traditional practices and promoting HBNC; defying traditional practices and assisting the woman in times of an emergency to save lives. Having on-call support from supervisors and cultivating a good working relationship with health providers facilitated effective service provision by Sakhis. CHWs having a strong sense of commitment can develop strategies to address challenges and provide HBNC services effectively if they also have strong supervisory support.

Community health workers and mobile technology: a systematic review of the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Braun, Rebecca; Catalani, Caricia; Wimbush, Julian; Israelski, Dennis

2013-01-01

In low-resource settings, community health workers are frontline providers who shoulder the health service delivery burden. Increasingly, mobile technologies are developed, tested, and deployed with community health workers to facilitate tasks and improve outcomes. We reviewed the evidence for the use of mobile technology by community health workers to identify opportunities and challenges for strengthening health systems in resource-constrained settings. We conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature from health, medical, social science, and engineering databases, using PRISMA guidelines. We identified a total of 25 unique full-text research articles on community health workers and their use of mobile technology for the delivery of health services. Community health workers have used mobile tools to advance a broad range of health aims throughout the globe, particularly maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS, and sexual and reproductive health. Most commonly, community health workers use mobile technology to collect field-based health data, receive alerts and reminders, facilitate health education sessions, and conduct person-to-person communication. Programmatic efforts to strengthen health service delivery focus on improving adherence to standards and guidelines, community education and training, and programmatic leadership and management practices. Those studies that evaluated program outcomes provided some evidence that mobile tools help community health workers to improve the quality of care provided, efficiency of services, and capacity for program monitoring. Evidence suggests mobile technology presents promising opportunities to improve the range and quality of services provided by community health workers. Small-scale efforts, pilot projects, and preliminary descriptive studies are increasing, and there is a trend toward using feasible and acceptable interventions that lead to positive program outcomes through operational improvements and

Community health workers and mobile technology: a systematic review of the literature.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca Braun

Full Text Available In low-resource settings, community health workers are frontline providers who shoulder the health service delivery burden. Increasingly, mobile technologies are developed, tested, and deployed with community health workers to facilitate tasks and improve outcomes. We reviewed the evidence for the use of mobile technology by community health workers to identify opportunities and challenges for strengthening health systems in resource-constrained settings.We conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature from health, medical, social science, and engineering databases, using PRISMA guidelines. We identified a total of 25 unique full-text research articles on community health workers and their use of mobile technology for the delivery of health services.Community health workers have used mobile tools to advance a broad range of health aims throughout the globe, particularly maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS, and sexual and reproductive health. Most commonly, community health workers use mobile technology to collect field-based health data, receive alerts and reminders, facilitate health education sessions, and conduct person-to-person communication. Programmatic efforts to strengthen health service delivery focus on improving adherence to standards and guidelines, community education and training, and programmatic leadership and management practices. Those studies that evaluated program outcomes provided some evidence that mobile tools help community health workers to improve the quality of care provided, efficiency of services, and capacity for program monitoring.Evidence suggests mobile technology presents promising opportunities to improve the range and quality of services provided by community health workers. Small-scale efforts, pilot projects, and preliminary descriptive studies are increasing, and there is a trend toward using feasible and acceptable interventions that lead to positive program outcomes through operational

Occupational health programme for lead workers in battery plants

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Byung-Kook

The realization of problems resulting from the exposure to undue high lead levels of workers in lead-using industries, particularly in storage battery plants, has given rise to a new occupational health service, the so-called type specific (harmful agent specific) group occupational health. In 1988, the Korean Ministry of Labor designated the Institute of Industrial Medicine, Soonchunhyang University, as an authorized organization to take care of lead workers in lead industries. The following occupational health services are provided by the Institute: (i) physical health examination; (ii) biological monitoring with zinc protoporphyrin, urine δ-aminolevulinic acid and blood lead; (iii) respiratory protection with maintenance-free respirators; (iv) measurement of the environmental condition of workplaces; (v) health education. A three-year occupational health programme for lead workers has contributed to improvements in the working conditions of lead industries, particularly in large-scale battery plants, and has decreased the unnecessary high lead burden of workers through on-going medical surveillance with biological monitoring and health education schemes. The strong commitment of both employers and the government to improve the working conditions of lead industries, together with the full cooperation of lead workers, has served to reduce the high lead burdens of lead workers. This decreases the number of lead-poisoning cases and provides more comfortable workplaces, particularly in battery plants.

Health workers' attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health services for unmarried adolescents in Ethiopia.

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Tilahun, Mesfin; Mengistie, Bezatu; Egata, Gudina; Reda, Ayalu A

2012-09-03

Adolescents in developing countries face a range of sexual and reproductive health problems. Lack of health care service for reproductive health or difficulty in accessing them are among them. In this study we aimed to examine health care workers' attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health services to unmarried adolescents in Ethiopia. We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional survey among 423 health care service providers working in eastern Ethiopia in 2010. A pre-tested structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests and logistic regression were performed to drive proportions and associations. The majority of health workers had positive attitudes. However, nearly one third (30%) of health care workers had negative attitudes toward providing RH services to unmarried adolescents. Close to half (46.5%) of the respondents had unfavorable responses toward providing family planning to unmarried adolescents. About 13% of health workers agreed to setting up penal rules and regulations against adolescents that practice pre-marital sexual intercourse. The multivariate analysis indicated that being married (OR 2.15; 95% CI 1.44 - 3.06), lower education level (OR 1.45; 95% CI 1.04 - 1.99), being a health extension worker (OR 2.49; 95% CI 1.43 - 4.35), lack of training on reproductive health services (OR 5.27; 95% CI 1.51 - 5.89) to be significantly associated with negative attitudes toward provision of sexual and reproductive services to adolescents. The majority of the health workers had generally positive attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health to adolescents. However, a minority has displayed negatives attitudes. Such negative attitudes will be barriers to service utilization by adolescents and hampers the efforts to reduce sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies among unmarried adolescents. We therefore call for a targeted effort toward alleviating negative attitudes toward adolescent

Health management of radiation workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kunugita, Naoki; Igari, Kazuyuki

2013-01-01

People in Japan have expressed great anxiety about possible radiation and radioactivity after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant of Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO), due to the great earthquake and tsunami in eastern Japan on 11 March 2011. A large number of workers were engaged in response and recovery operations, and they were possibly exposed to high doses of radiation as compared to the general population. In the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986, high doses of radiation to 134 plant staff and emergency personnel resulted in acute radiation syndrome (ARS), which proved fatal for 28 of them. In the Fukushima accident, six workers were exposed to more than 250 mSv of radiation during the initial response phase, but no one showed ARS. It is necessary to continue registration of radiation doses for all workers who were exposed to radiation to facilitate suitable healthcare management in the future. In addition to radiation exposure, a group of workers were also exposed to other health hazards. Frequent occurrence of heat disorders has been a concern for the workers wearing protective clothing with poor ventilation. A comprehensive program to prevent heat illness was implemented by TEPCO under the guidance of the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. It is important to provide effective systems not only for prevention of radiation exposure but also for general management of other health risks including heat disorders and infection. (author)

VIOLENCE AGAINST HEALTH CARE WORKERS: A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hacer ATAMAN

2016-01-01

Full Text Available As violence in society is increasing in recent years it is an important problem in health institutions as well. Changes in health systems, rising socio-economic levels of people, and changes in expectations for health services led to violence in health sector. This study was conducted for the purpose of examining work place violence against health care workers. This retrospective-descriptive study covers a period from December 2011 to April 2015. 136 notifications about work place violence reported by health workers to quality management unit of a hospital were taken into account. Research findings show that 43,4% of the victims of violence was physicians, 37,5% was nurses and health officers and 19,1% were from other professions. 63,2% of the health workers were women, 36,8% were male. Additionally health workers were exposed to violence by 47.3% of the patients and 52.7% by their relatives. 69.7% of the people applied violence were male and 30.3% were female. 63,2% of the health workers exposed to violence were women, 36,8% were male. According to our results male physicians were exposed to workplace violence more than other workers and this was significant ( χ 2=31,634, p<0,01. When place of violence occurred was investigated it was seen that while most of physicians were exposed to violence in polyclinics, nurses were exposed to violence in inpatient services (χ2=18,231, p<0,01. Male physicians were exposed to verbal violence most. On the other hand nurses experienced both verbal and physical violence (χ2=34,639,p<0.01. Patient relatives applied verbal violence and the others applied physical violence (χ2=22,073, p<0,01. As a result, in order to reduce / prevent violence in work place , it is considered necessary to increase consciousness of patients and their relatives, to increase security measures in health institutions, to provide health workers to report work place violence to management , to improve physical working conditions and

The experiences of pediatric social workers providing end-of-life care.

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Muskat, Barbara; Brownstone, David; Greenblatt, Andrea

2017-07-01

Pediatric social workers working in acute care hospital settings may care for children and their families in end-of-life circumstances. This qualitative study is part of a larger study focusing on the experiences of health care providers working with dying children. This study consisted of 9 semi-structured interviews of acute care pediatric social workers who work with dying children and their families. Themes included the role of social work with dying children, the impact of their work and coping strategies. Authors suggest a hospital-worker partnership in supporting staff and promotion of supportive resources.

[Calculation of workers' health care costs].

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Rydlewska-Liszkowska, Izabela

2006-01-01

In different health care systems, there are different schemes of organization and principles of financing activities aimed at ensuring the working population health and safety. Regardless of the scheme and the range of health care provided, economists strive for rationalization of costs (including their reduction). This applies to both employers who include workers' health care costs into indirect costs of the market product manufacture and health care institutions, which provide health care services. In practice, new methods of setting costs of workers' health care facilitate regular cost control, acquisition of detailed information about costs, and better adjustment of information to planning and control needs in individual health care institutions. For economic institutions and institutions specialized in workers' health care, a traditional cost-effect calculation focused on setting costs of individual products (services) is useful only if costs are relatively low and the output of simple products is not very high. But when products form aggregates of numerous actions like those involved in occupational medicine services, the method of activity based costing (ABC), representing the process approach, is much more useful. According to this approach costs are attributed to the product according to resources used during different activities involved in its production. The calculation of costs proceeds through allocation of all direct costs for specific processes in a given institution. Indirect costs are settled on the basis of resources used during the implementation of individual tasks involved in the process of making a new product. In this method, so called map of processes/actions consisted in the manufactured product and their interrelations are of particular importance. Advancements in the cost-effect for the management of health care institutions depend on their managerial needs. Current trends in this regard primarily depend on treating all cost reference

Social Workers' Role in the Canadian Mental Health Care System

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Towns, Ashley M.; Schwartz, Karen

2012-01-01

Objective: Using Canadian survey data this research provides social workers in Canada with a better understanding of their role in the Canadian mental health care system. Methods: By analyzing data from the Canadian Community Health Survey, Cycle 1.2 Mental Health and Well-being, the role of social workers in the Canadian mental health system was…

Effects of changes in the pre-licensure education of health workers on health-worker supply.

Science.gov (United States)

Pariyo, George W; Kiwanuka, Suzanne N; Rutebemberwa, Elizeus; Okui, Olico; Ssengooba, Freddie

2009-04-15

comprising of a package of student support activities including social, academic, and career guidance and mentorship resulted in an increase in the number of minority students who enrolled and graduated from health training institutions. The evidence to estimate the likely effects of interventions in pre-licensure education to increase health-worker supply is generally insufficient or unavailable, particularly in LMICs. Promising innovations from a high-income country include providing financial support to health professional students or introducing mechanisms to identify and encourage potential students and offering support to 'at risk' students. These and other promising interventions should be evaluated in LMIC.

Health protection of radiation workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Norwood, W.D.

1975-01-01

This textbook is addressed to all those concerned with the protection of radiation workers. It provides full coverage of the implications of radiation in exposed workers, and, after a chapter outlining, in simple terms, the basic facts about radiation, deals with measurement of ionising radiation; radiation dosimetry; effectiveness of absorbed dose; general biological effects of ionising radiation; somatic effects of radiation; the acute radiation syndrome; other somatic effects; hereditary effects; radiation protection standards and regulations; radiation protection; medical supervision of radiation workers; general methods of diagnosis and treatment; metabolism and health problems of some radioisotopes; plutonium and other transuranium elements; radiation accidents; emergency plans and medical care; atomic power plants; medico-legal problems

Globalization and workers' health.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawachi, Ichiro

2008-10-01

The global integration of economies worldwide has led to increased pressure for "labor flexibility". A notable aspect of this trend has been the rise in non-standard work arrangements, which include part-time work, temporary agency-based work, fixed-term contingent work, and independent contracting. Although non-standard work arrangements are convenient for employers, they are often associated with poor pay, absence of pension and health benefits, as well as lack of protection from unions and labor laws. Studies have begun to address the question of whether these "precarious" jobs pose a health hazard for workers. The challenge for causal inference is that precarious workers are likely to differ from non-precarious workers in a variety of characteristics that also influence health outcomes, i.e. there is confounding and selection bias. However, even after taking account of these biases--through propensity score-matched analysis--there is evidence to suggest that non-standard work may be damaging to workers' health. Policies modeled after the European Union's Directive on Part-Time Work may help to mitigate some of the health hazards associated with precarious work.

Does Indonesian National Health Insurance serve a potential for improving health equity in favour of workers in informal economy?

OpenAIRE

Kartika, Dwintha Maya

2015-01-01

This study examines whether Indonesian national health insurance system promotes health equity in favour of informal economy workers. It first lays out the theoretical justification on the need of social protection, particularly health protection for informal workers. The paper argues that the absence of health protection for vulnerable informal workers in Indonesia has reinforced health inequity between formal and informal workers, thus provides a justification on extending health protection...

Why do health workers in rural Tanzania prefer public sector employment?

Science.gov (United States)

Songstad, Nils Gunnar; Moland, Karen Marie; Massay, Deodatus Amadeus; Blystad, Astrid

2012-04-05

Severe shortages of qualified health workers and geographical imbalances in the workforce in many low-income countries require the national health sector management to closely monitor and address issues related to the distribution of health workers across various types of health facilities. This article discusses health workers' preferences for workplace and their perceptions and experiences of the differences in working conditions in the public health sector versus the church-run health facilities in Tanzania. The broader aim is to generate knowledge that can add to debates on health sector management in low-income contexts. The study has a qualitative study design to elicit in-depth information on health workers' preferences for workplace. The data comprise ten focus group discussions (FGDs) and 29 in-depth interviews (IDIs) with auxiliary staff, nursing staff, clinicians and administrators in the public health sector and in a large church-run hospital in a rural district in Tanzania. The study has an ethnographic backdrop based on earlier long-term fieldwork in Tanzania. The study found a clear preference for public sector employment. This was associated with health worker rights and access to various benefits offered to health workers in government service, particularly the favourable pension schemes providing economic security in old age. Health workers acknowledged that church-run hospitals generally were better equipped and provided better quality patient care, but these concerns tended to be outweighed by the financial assets of public sector employment. In addition to the sector specific differences, family concerns emerged as important in decisions on workplace. The preference for public sector employment among health workers shown in this study seems to be associated primarily with the favourable pension scheme. The overall shortage of health workers and the distribution between health facilities is a challenge in a resource constrained health system

Issues with prescribed medications in Aboriginal communities: Aboriginal health workers' perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamrosi, Kim; Taylor, Susan J; Aslani, Parisa

2006-01-01

The health of Indigenous Australians remains appalling. The causes of this situation are multi-factorial, however one contributing factor is poor medication compliance within Aboriginal populations. Anecdotal evidence provided by Aboriginal health workers in western New South Wales (NSW), Australia, has suggested that there are problems associated with the use of prescribed medications within the Aboriginal community. Aboriginal health workers form a core component of the Aboriginal health service sector and they have an in-depth knowledge of the community and its healthcare provision, as well as a familiarity with clinic patients and families. As such they are an important group whose opinions and beliefs about medication use in the Aboriginal population should be investigated. While there have been studies on the issues of prescribing in Aboriginal communities and access to medications, limited investigation into the use of prescribed medicines in Aboriginal communities and the role of the pharmacist in that process, has taken place. Therefore, this research aimed to identify the type of and reasons for inappropriate use of prescribed medications within Aboriginal communities serviced by the Mid Western Area Health Service (since incorporated into the Greater West Area Health Service) as perceived by the Aboriginal health workers in the area, and to explore strategies in conjunction with those Aboriginal health workers to address identified issues. Qualitative, in-depth interviews were held with 11 Aboriginal health workers employed in Community Health Centres and hospitals in the Mid Western Area Health service of NSW. The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. The transcripts were content analysed for emerging themes. The interviews explored the beliefs, perceptions and experiences of the Aboriginal health workers regarding prescribed medication use, the role of the pharmacist, and identification of future strategies to improve medication use in

Health workers' experiences of coping with the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone's health system: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Raven, Joanna; Wurie, Haja; Witter, Sophie

2018-04-05

The 2014 Ebola Virus Disease epidemic evolved in alarming ways in Sierra Leone spreading to all districts. The country struggled to control it against a backdrop of a health system that was already over-burdened. Health workers play an important role during epidemics but there is limited research on how they cope during health epidemics in fragile states. This paper explores the challenges faced by health workers and their coping strategies during the Ebola outbreak in four districts - Bonthe, Kenema, Koinadugu and Western Area - of Sierra Leone. We used a qualitative study design: key informant interviews (n = 19) with members of the District Health Management Teams and local councils, health facility managers and international partners; and in depth interviews with health workers (n = 25) working in public health facilities and international health workers involved with the treatment of Ebola patients. There were several important coping strategies including those that drew upon existing mechanisms: being sustained by religion, a sense of serving their country and community, and peer and family support. Externally derived strategies included: training which built health worker confidence in providing care; provision of equipment to do their job safely; a social media platform which helped health workers deal with challenges; workshops that provided ways to deal with the stigma associated with being a health worker; and the risk allowance, which motivated staff to work in facilities and provided an additional income source. Supportive supervision, peer support networks and better use of communication technology should be pursued, alongside a programme for rebuilding trusting relations with community structures. The challenge is building these mechanisms into routine systems, pre-empting shocks, rather than waiting to respond belatedly to crises.

Occupational allergic diseases in kitchen and health care workers: an underestimated health issue.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilge, Ugur; Unluoglu, Ilhami; Son, Nazan; Keskin, Ahmet; Korkut, Yasemin; Unalacak, Murat

2013-01-01

This study evaluated the frequencies of allergic symptoms and rate of upper respiratory infections during the past year in the general population, kitchen workers (KW) and health care workers (HCW). The European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) was used to inquire retrospectively about asthma and asthma-like symptoms and the number of treatments required for previous upper respiratory tract infections (URTI: acute pharyngitis, acute sinusitis, etc.) during the past year for health care workers, kitchen workers, and members of the general population. Adjusted odds ratios by gender, age, and smoking status were calculated. 579 subjects (186 from the general population, 205 KW, and 188 HCW; 263 females, 316 males) participated in the study. Noninfectious (allergic) rhinitis was significantly higher in the HCW and KW groups than in the general population (P issue. Health care providers should become familiar with workplace environments and environmental causes of occupational rhinitis and asthma.

Office home care workers' occupational health: associations with workplace flexibility and worker insecurity.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeytinoglu, Isik U; Denton, Margaret; Davies, Sharon; Plenderleith, Jennifer Millen

2009-05-01

Office home care workers provide support to visiting staff, although their work tends to be invisible in many respects. This paper focuses on managers, supervisors, coor dinators, case managers and office administrative staff in home care. We examine the effects of workplace flexibility and worker insecurity on office home care workers' occupational health, particularly their self-reported stress and musculoskeletal disorders. Data come from our survey of 300 home care office staff in a mid-sized city in Ontario. Results show that workers' perceptions of insecurity are positively associated with musculoskeletal disorders but not workplace flexibility measures. We recommend that managers and other decision-makers in the home care field pay attention to the perceptions of workers' insecurity in initiating workplace flexibility measures.

The occupational health status of African-American women health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, C W

1996-01-01

Race, ethnicity, and gender are significant indicators of occupational status, general health status, and thus, occupational health status. Although African-American women constitute only 6.8% of the total U.S. labor force, they hold 20% of the jobs in the health care industry and are disproportionately represented in those jobs that have the highest levels of workplace exposure to hazards. As a result, they are therefore more likely to be at greater exposure and risk to the spectrum of occupational health problems. In order to gain insight into the effects of race and gender on the occupational health status of African-American women health care workers, this article uses three data sources that provide different but complementary sources of information on the demographic characteristics of workers, location of categories of occupations, working conditions of jobs, and other job and worker characteristics. Given the concentration of African-American women in health care positions where there exists a greater likelihood of being exposed to occupational hazards, it is therefore both logical and appropriate for primary care physicians, especially those engaged in office-based practices, to identify this target population for special services and to be more aware of the type of health issues with which these patients are more likely to present and to experience during their working lives. Health care providers have a responsibility to assess occupational factors related to a patient's health problems and to incorporate this information into their treatment protocols and into the design and explanation of each patient's care plan.

Lay perspectives on lay health worker roles, boundaries and participation within three UK community-based health promotion projects.

Science.gov (United States)

South, J; Kinsella, K; Meah, A

2012-08-01

This paper examines lay interpretations of lay health worker roles within three UK community-based health promotion projects. It argues that understanding lay health worker roles requires critical analysis of the complex interrelationships between professionals, lay workers and the communities receiving a programme. Findings are presented that are drawn from a qualitative study of lay engagement in public health programme delivery where a key objective was to examine the perspectives of community members with the experience of receiving services delivered by lay health workers. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with 46 programme recipients from three case study projects; a breastfeeding peer support service, a walking for health scheme and a neighbourhood health project. The results show how participants interpreted the function and responsibilities of lay health workers and how those roles provided personalized support and facilitated engagement in group activities. Further insights into community participation processes are provided revealing the potential for active engagement in both formal and informal roles. The paper concludes that social relationships are core to understanding lay health worker programmes and therefore analysis needs to take account of the capacity for community members to move within a spectrum of participation defined by increasing responsibility for others.

Home Health Care for California's Injured Workers: Options for Implementing a Fee Schedule.

Science.gov (United States)

Wynn, Barbara O; Boustead, Anne

2015-07-15

The California Department of Industrial Relations/Division of Worker's Compensation asked RAND to provide technical assistance in developing a fee schedule for home health services provided to injured workers. The fee schedule needs to address the full spectrum of home health services ranging from skilled nursing and therapy services to unskilled personal care or chore services that may be provided by family members. RAND researchers consulted with stakeholders in the California workers' compensation system to outline issues the fee schedule should address, reviewed home health fee schedules used by other payers, and conducted interviews with WC administrators from other jurisdictions to elicit their experiences. California stakeholders identified unskilled attendant services as most problematic in determining need and payment rates, particularly services furnished by family members. RAND researchers concentrated on fee schedule options that would result in a single fee schedule covering the full range of home health care services furnished to injured workers and made three sets of recommendations. The first set pertains to obtaining additional information that would highlight the policy issues likely to occur with the implementation of the fee schedule and alternatives for assessing an injured worker's home health care needs. Another approach conforms most closely with the Labor Code requirements. It would integrate the fee schedules used by Medicare, In-Home Health Supportive Services, and the federal Office of Workers' Compensation. The third approach would base the home health fee schedule on rules used by the federal Office of Workers' Compensation.

Are health workers motivated by income? Job motivation of Cambodian primary health workers implementing performance-based financing.

Science.gov (United States)

Khim, Keovathanak

2016-01-01

Financial incentives are widely used in performance-based financing (PBF) schemes, but their contribution to health workers' incomes and job motivation is poorly understood. Cambodia undertook health sector reform from the middle of 2009 and PBF was employed as a part of the reform process. This study examines job motivation for primary health workers (PHWs) under PBF reform in Cambodia and assesses the relationship between job motivation and income. A cross-sectional self-administered survey was conducted on 266 PHWs, from 54 health centers in the 15 districts involved in the reform. The health workers were asked to report all sources of income from public sector jobs and provide answers to 20 items related to job motivation. Factor analysis was conducted to identify the latent variables of job motivation. Factors associated with motivation were identified through multivariable regression. PHWs reported multiple sources of income and an average total income of US$190 per month. Financial incentives under the PBF scheme account for 42% of the average total income. PHWs had an index motivation score of 4.9 (on a scale from one to six), suggesting they had generally high job motivation that was related to a sense of community service, respect, and job benefits. Regression analysis indicated that income and the perception of a fair distribution of incentives were both statistically significant in association with higher job motivation scores. Financial incentives used in the reform formed a significant part of health workers' income and influenced their job motivation. Improving job motivation requires fixing payment mechanisms and increasing the size of incentives. PBF is more likely to succeed when income, training needs, and the desire for a sense of community service are addressed and institutionalized within the health system.

Estimating workers' marginal valuation of employer health benefits: would insured workers prefer more health insurance or higher wages?

Science.gov (United States)

Royalty, Anne Beeson

2008-01-01

In recent years the cost of health insurance has been increasing much faster than wages. In the face of these rising costs, many employers will have to make difficult decisions about whether to cut back health benefits or to compensate workers with lower wages or lower wage growth. In this paper, we ask the question, "Which do workers value more -- one additional dollar's worth of health benefits or one more dollar in their pockets?" Using a new approach to obtaining estimates of insured workers' marginal valuation of health benefits this paper estimates how much, on average, employees value the marginal dollar paid by employers for their workers' health insurance. We find that insured workers value the marginal health premium dollar at significantly less than the marginal wage dollar. However, workers value insurance generosity very highly. The marginal dollar spent on health insurance that adds an additional dollar's worth of observable dimensions of plan generosity, such as lower deductibles or coverage of additional services, is valued at significantly more than one dollar.

Aboriginal health workers experience multilevel barriers to quitting smoking: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, Anna P; Cargo, Margaret; Stewart, Harold; Chong, Alwin; Daniel, Mark

2012-05-23

Long-term measures to reduce tobacco consumption in Australia have had differential effects in the population. The prevalence of smoking in Aboriginal peoples is currently more than double that of the non-Aboriginal population. Aboriginal Health Workers are responsible for providing primary health care to Aboriginal clients including smoking cessation programs. However, Aboriginal Health Workers are frequently smokers themselves, and their smoking undermines the smoking cessation services they deliver to Aboriginal clients. An understanding of the barriers to quitting smoking experienced by Aboriginal Health Workers is needed to design culturally relevant smoking cessation programs. Once smoking is reduced in Aboriginal Health Workers, they may then be able to support Aboriginal clients to quit smoking. We undertook a fundamental qualitative description study underpinned by social ecological theory. The research was participatory, and academic researchers worked in partnership with personnel from the local Aboriginal health council. The barriers Aboriginal Health Workers experience in relation to quitting smoking were explored in 34 semi-structured interviews (with 23 Aboriginal Health Workers and 11 other health staff) and 3 focus groups (n = 17 participants) with key informants. Content analysis was performed on transcribed text and interview notes. Aboriginal Health Workers spoke of burdensome stress and grief which made them unable to prioritise quitting smoking. They lacked knowledge about quitting and access to culturally relevant quitting resources. Interpersonal obstacles included a social pressure to smoke, social exclusion when quitting, and few role models. In many workplaces, smoking was part of organisational culture and there were challenges to implementation of Smokefree policy. Respondents identified inadequate funding of tobacco programs and a lack of Smokefree public spaces as policy level barriers. The normalisation of smoking in Aboriginal

Job stress among community health workers: a multi-method study from Pakistan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iqbal Zafar

2008-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In low income countries, the task of providing primary health care is often the responsibility of community health workers. In Pakistan, community workers called Lady Health Workers (LHW deliver basic health care at the doorstep in the rural areas and urban slums. Evaluations show that it is a successful programme but point out inconsistencies in the quality of service provided. In order achieve this, it would be important to obtain the workers' viewpoint on their job-description, the problems they face and the levels of stress they encounter. Methods We conducted a multi-method study to investigate the aforementioned issues. All LHWs from one typical rural sub-district in Rawalpindi were surveyed. Focus group discussions with a sub-set of these workers were also conducted. Results About a quarter of the LHWs were found to have significant occupational stress. Factors associated with stress included having low socio-economic status and having to travel long distances for work. Inconsistent medical supplies, inadequate stipends, lack of career structure and not being equipped to communicate effectively with families were the main factors for job dissatisfaction among these workers. Recommendations Improvement in remuneration, better administration of supplies and a structured career path should be ensured for better performance of community health workers. In addition, communication skills learning should be an essential part of their training programme.

Restructuring brain drain: strengthening governance and financing for health worker migration.

Science.gov (United States)

Mackey, Tim K; Liang, Bryan A

2013-01-15

Health worker migration from resource-poor countries to developed countries, also known as ''brain drain'', represents a serious global health crisis and a significant barrier to achieving global health equity. Resource-poor countries are unable to recruit and retain health workers for domestic health systems, resulting in inadequate health infrastructure and millions of dollars in healthcare investment losses. Using acceptable methods of policy analysis, we first assess current strategies aimed at alleviating brain drain and then propose our own global health policy based solution to address current policy limitations. Although governments and private organizations have tried to address this policy challenge, brain drain continues to destabilise public health systems and their populations globally. Most importantly, lack of adequate financing and binding governance solutions continue to fail to prevent health worker brain drain. In response to these challenges, the establishment of a Global Health Resource Fund in conjunction with an international framework for health worker migration could create global governance for stable funding mechanisms encourage equitable migration pathways, and provide data collection that is desperately needed.

Health activism in Cape Town: a case study of the Health Workers Society.

Science.gov (United States)

Pick, W; Claassen, J W B; Le Grange, C A; Hussey, G D

2012-03-02

The Health Workers Society (HWS), founded in 1980, was one of several progressive health organisations that fought for a democratic health system in South Africa. We document the sociopolitical context within which it operated and some of its achievements. HWS, many of whose members were staff and students of the University of Cape Town (UCT), provided a forum for debate on health-related issues, politics and society, and worked closely with other organisations to oppose the apartheid state's health policies and practices. They assisted with the formation of the first dedicated trade union for all healthcare workers and were one of the first to pioneer the primary healthcare approach in an informal settlement in Cape Town.

Community Health Workers in Health-Related Missouri Agencies: Role, Professional Development and Health Information Needs

Science.gov (United States)

Visker, Joseph; Rhodes, Darson; Cox, Carol

2017-01-01

Community Health Workers (CHWs) serve an indispensable but oftten misunderstood and unrecognized role in public health. These individuals constitute the frontline of health care in many communities and are relied upon to provide an assortment of services. Unfortunately, the full extent to which CHWs are utilized is unknown and there is little…

Promoting Occupational Safety and Health for Cambodian Entertainment Sector Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Lee-Nah; Howard, Richard; Torriente, Anna Maria; Por, Chuong

2016-08-01

Cambodia has developed booming textile, garment, tourism, and entertainment service industries since the mid-1990s. The 2007 global financial crisis pushed many garment workers, who lost their jobs, into the entertainment sector. Entertainment workers are typically engaged informally by their employers and are subjected to long working hours, sexual harassment, and violence. Many who sell beverages are forced into excessive alcohol consumption as part of their work. Many are also expected by their employers and clients to provide sexual services. To address unsafe and unhealthy working conditions for these workers, an innovative occupational safety and health regulation was adopted in 2014. This first-of-its-kind occupational safety and health regulation was developed jointly by the Cambodian Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training and employers' and workers' organizations in the entertainment sector. The implementation of this regulation can also be a viable contribution of occupational safety and health to HIV interventions for these workers. © The Author(s) 2016.

A trial of a job-specific workers' health surveillance program for construction workers: study protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Boschman, Julitta S; van der Molen, Henk F; van Duivenbooden, Cor; Sluiter, Judith K; Frings-Dresen, Monique H W

2011-09-29

Dutch construction workers are offered periodic health examinations. This care can be improved by tailoring this workers health surveillance (WHS) to the demands of the job and adjust the preventive actions to the specific health risks of a worker in a particular job. To improve the quality of the WHS for construction workers and stimulate relevant job-specific preventive actions by the occupational physician, we have developed a job-specific WHS. The job-specific WHS consists of modules assessing both physical and psychological requirements. The selected measurement instruments chosen, are based on their appropriateness to measure the workers' capacity and health requirements. They include a questionnaire and biometrical tests, and physical performance tests that measure physical functional capabilities. Furthermore, our job-specific WHS provides occupational physicians with a protocol to increase the worker-behavioural effectiveness of their counselling and to stimulate job-specific preventive actions. The objective of this paper is to describe and clarify our study to evaluate the behavioural effects of this job-specific WHS on workers and occupational physicians. The ongoing study of bricklayers and supervisors is a nonrandomised trial to compare the outcome of an intervention (job-specific WHS) group (n = 206) with that of a control (WHS) group (n = 206). The study includes a three-month follow-up. The primary outcome measure is the proportion of participants who have undertaken one or more of the preventive actions advised by their occupational physician in the three months after attending the WHS. A process evaluation will be carried out to determine context, reach, dose delivered, dose received, fidelity, and satisfaction. The present study is in accordance with the TREND Statement. This study will allow an evaluation of the behaviour of both the workers and occupational physician regarding the preventive actions undertaken by them within the scope of a job

Comparative Assessment of Health Workers Performance and The ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative Assessment of Health Workers Performance and The Performance ... had very high significant effect on performance of health workers which was independent of ... Keywords: Health Worker Performance Factors Hospitals Nigeria ...

Workplace violence against homecare workers and its relationship with workers health outcomes: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanson, Ginger C; Perrin, Nancy A; Moss, Helen; Laharnar, Naima; Glass, Nancy

2015-01-17

Consumer-driven homecare models support aging and disabled individuals to live independently through the services of homecare workers. Although these models have benefits, including autonomy and control over services, little evidence exists about challenges homecare workers may face when providing services, including workplace violence and the negative outcomes associated with workplace violence. This study investigates the prevalence of workplace violence among homecare workers and examines the relationship between these experiences and homecare worker stress, burnout, depression, and sleep. We recruited female homecare workers in Oregon, the first US state to implement a consumer driven homecare model, to complete an on-line or telephone survey with peer interviewers. The survey asked about demographics and included measures to assess workplace violence, fear, stress, burnout, depression and sleep problems. Homecare workers (n = 1,214) reported past-year incidents of verbal aggression (50.3% of respondents), workplace aggression (26.9%), workplace violence (23.6%), sexual harassment (25.7%), and sexual aggression (12.8%). Exposure was associated with greater stress (p workplace aggression buffered homecare workers against negative work and health outcomes. To ensure homecare worker safety and positive health outcomes in the provision of services, it is critical to develop and implement preventive safety training programs with policies and procedures that support homecare workers who experience harassment and violence.

Health sector reform and public sector health worker motivation: a conceptual framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Franco, Lynne Miller; Bennett, Sara; Kanfer, Ruth

2002-04-01

Motivation in the work context can be defined as an individual's degree of willingness to exert and maintain an effort towards organizational goals. Health sector performance is critically dependent on worker motivation, with service quality, efficiency, and equity, all directly mediated by workers' willingness to apply themselves to their tasks. Resource availability and worker competence are essential but not sufficient to ensure desired worker performance. While financial incentives may be important determinants of worker motivation, they alone cannot and have not resolved all worker motivation problems. Worker motivation is a complex process and crosses many disciplinary boundaries, including economics, psychology, organizational development, human resource management, and sociology. This paper discusses the many layers of influences upon health worker motivation: the internal individual-level determinants, determinants that operate at organizational (work context) level, and determinants stemming from interactions with the broader societal culture. Worker motivation will be affected by health sector reforms which potentially affect organizational culture, reporting structures, human resource management, channels of accountability, types of interactions with clients and communities, etc. The conceptual model described in this paper clarifies ways in which worker motivation is influenced and how health sector reform can positively affect worker motivation. Among others, health sector policy makers can better facilitate goal congruence (between workers and the organizations they work for) and improved worker motivation by considering the following in their design and implementation of health sector reforms: addressing multiple channels for worker motivation, recognizing the importance of communication and leadership for reforms, identifying organizational and cultural values that might facilitate or impede implementation of reforms, and understanding that reforms

Providing mental health first aid in the workplace: a Delphi consensus study

OpenAIRE

Bovopoulos, Nataly; Jorm, Anthony F.; Bond, Kathy S.; LaMontagne, Anthony D.; Reavley, Nicola J.; Kelly, Claire M.; Kitchener, Betty A.; Martin, Angela

2016-01-01

Background Mental health problems are common in the workplace, but workers affected by such problems are not always well supported by managers and co-workers. Guidelines exist for the public on how to provide mental health first aid, but not specifically on how to tailor one?s approach if the person of concern is a co-worker or employee. A Delphi consensus study was carried out to develop guidelines on additional considerations required when offering mental health first aid in a workplace con...

Brazilian union actions for workers' health protection

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Rodolpho Repullo Junior

Full Text Available CONTEXT: Many authors have emphasized the importance of worker strength through unionized organizations, in relation to the improvement of working procedures, and have reported on the decisiveness of labor movement actions in achieving modifications within the field of work and health. OBJECTIVE: To describe the ways in which Brazilian unions have tried to intervene in health-illness and work processes, identifying the existence of commonality in union actions in this field. TYPE OF STUDY: Qualitative study. SETTING: Postgraduate Program, Environmental Health Department, Faculdade de Saúde Pública, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS: Union health advisers and directors were interviewed. Documents relating to union action towards protecting workers' health were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Unions articulate actions regarding workers' health of a technical and political nature that involve many aspects and high complexity. These have been divided into thematic categories for better analysis. DISCUSSION: Union actions regarding workers' health in Brazil are restricted to some unions, located mainly in the southern, southeastern and northeastern regions of the country. Nonetheless, the unions undertaking such actions represent many professions of great economic and political importance. CONCLUSIONS: The recent changes in health and safety at work regulations, recognition of professional diseases, creation of workers' health services and programs within the unified health system, and operational improvements in companies' specialized safety and occupational medicine services, all basically result from union action. There is commonality of union action in this field in its seeking of technical and political strengthening for all workers and their general and local representation. This has the objective of benefiting collective bargaining between employers and workers. Inter-institutional action on behalf of workers' rights

Lay Worker Health Literacy: A Concept Analysis and Operational Definition.

Science.gov (United States)

Cadman, Kathleen Paco

2017-10-01

The concept of lay worker health literacy is created by concurrently analyzing and synthesizing two intersecting concepts, lay workers and health literacy. Articulation of this unique intersection is the result of implementing a simplified Wilson's Concept Analysis Procedure. This process incorporates the following components: a) selecting a concept, b) determining the aims/purposes of analysis, c) identifying all uses of the concept, d) determining defining attributes, e) identifying a model case, f) identifying borderline, related, contrary, and illegitimate cases, g) identifying antecedents and consequences, and h) defining empirical referents. Furthermore, as current literature provides no operational definition for lay worker health literacy, one is created to contribute cohesion to the concept. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Sickness absence among health workers in belo horizonte, brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Bassi, Iara; Assunção, Ada Ávila; Pimenta, Adriano Marçal; Benavides, Fernando G; Ubalde-Lopez, Monica

2016-05-25

To describe the prevalence of sickness absence and to analyze factors associated with the outcome according to gender in a sample of healthcare workers at the Belo Horizonte Health Department. This study was based on a Belo Horizonte Health Department survey carried out between September 2008 and January 2009. From a randomly selected sample of 2,205 workers, 1,808 agreed to participate. Workers were classified into Health Staff or Health Care. Other explanatory variables were social and demographic data, work characteristics, and personal health. The Poisson regression was applied to analyze factors associated with sickness absence by the prevalence ratio (PR). The overall prevalence of sickness absence was 31.5% (23.8% for men and 34.6% for women). In the final model, we found higher rates of sickness absence in both male and female workers involved in tasks with high psychosocial demands (PR=1.86 men; PR=1.38 women) and in those that reported using medication for treating chronic diseases (PR=1.96 men; PR=1.50 women). Women having a permanent job contract had a higher prevalence of sickness absence than those having a temporary job contract (PR=1.71). Our findings suggest a paradox in how healthcare is organized: good results in terms of its global objective of providing healthcare for citizens contrast with lack of effective measures for protecting healthcare workers.

Aboriginal Health Workers experience multilevel barriers to quitting smoking: a qualitative study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dawson Anna P

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction Long-term measures to reduce tobacco consumption in Australia have had differential effects in the population. The prevalence of smoking in Aboriginal peoples is currently more than double that of the non-Aboriginal population. Aboriginal Health Workers are responsible for providing primary health care to Aboriginal clients including smoking cessation programs. However, Aboriginal Health Workers are frequently smokers themselves, and their smoking undermines the smoking cessation services they deliver to Aboriginal clients. An understanding of the barriers to quitting smoking experienced by Aboriginal Health Workers is needed to design culturally relevant smoking cessation programs. Once smoking is reduced in Aboriginal Health Workers, they may then be able to support Aboriginal clients to quit smoking. Methods We undertook a fundamental qualitative description study underpinned by social ecological theory. The research was participatory, and academic researchers worked in partnership with personnel from the local Aboriginal health council. The barriers Aboriginal Health Workers experience in relation to quitting smoking were explored in 34 semi-structured interviews (with 23 Aboriginal Health Workers and 11 other health staff and 3 focus groups (n = 17 participants with key informants. Content analysis was performed on transcribed text and interview notes. Results Aboriginal Health Workers spoke of burdensome stress and grief which made them unable to prioritise quitting smoking. They lacked knowledge about quitting and access to culturally relevant quitting resources. Interpersonal obstacles included a social pressure to smoke, social exclusion when quitting, and few role models. In many workplaces, smoking was part of organisational culture and there were challenges to implementation of Smokefree policy. Respondents identified inadequate funding of tobacco programs and a lack of Smokefree public spaces as policy

Occupational Health for Health Care Providers

Science.gov (United States)

Health care workers are exposed to many job hazards. These can include Infections Needle injuries Back injuries ... prevention practices. They can reduce your risk of health problems. Use protective equipment, follow infection control guidelines, ...

Understanding informal payments in health care: motivation of health workers in Tanzania.

Science.gov (United States)

Stringhini, Silvia; Thomas, Steve; Bidwell, Posy; Mtui, Tina; Mwisongo, Aziza

2009-06-30

There is growing evidence that informal payments for health care are fairly common in many low- and middle-income countries. Informal payments are reported to have a negative consequence on equity and quality of care; it has been suggested, however, that they may contribute to health worker motivation and retention. Given the significance of motivation and retention issues in human resources for health, a better understanding of the relationships between the two phenomena is needed. This study attempts to assess whether and in what ways informal payments occur in Kibaha, Tanzania. Moreover, it aims to assess how informal earnings might help boost health worker motivation and retention. Nine focus groups were conducted in three health facilities of different levels in the health system. In total, 64 health workers participated in the focus group discussions (81% female, 19% male) and where possible, focus groups were divided by cadre. All data were processed and analysed by means of the NVivo software package. The use of informal payments in the study area was confirmed by this study. Furthermore, a negative relationship between informal payments and job satisfaction and better motivation is suggested. Participants mentioned that they felt enslaved by patients as a result of being bribed and this resulted in loss of self-esteem. Furthermore, fear of detection was a main demotivating factor. These factors seem to counterbalance the positive effect of financial incentives. Moreover, informal payments were not found to be related to retention of health workers in the public health system. Other factors such as job security seemed to be more relevant for retention. This study suggests that the practice of informal payments contributes to the general demotivation of health workers and negatively affects access to health care services and quality of the health system. Policy action is needed that not only provides better financial incentives for individuals but also

Understanding informal payments in health care: motivation of health workers in Tanzania

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bidwell Posy

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background There is growing evidence that informal payments for health care are fairly common in many low- and middle-income countries. Informal payments are reported to have a negative consequence on equity and quality of care; it has been suggested, however, that they may contribute to health worker motivation and retention. Given the significance of motivation and retention issues in human resources for health, a better understanding of the relationships between the two phenomena is needed. This study attempts to assess whether and in what ways informal payments occur in Kibaha, Tanzania. Moreover, it aims to assess how informal earnings might help boost health worker motivation and retention. Methods Nine focus groups were conducted in three health facilities of different levels in the health system. In total, 64 health workers participated in the focus group discussions (81% female, 19% male and where possible, focus groups were divided by cadre. All data were processed and analysed by means of the NVivo software package. Results The use of informal payments in the study area was confirmed by this study. Furthermore, a negative relationship between informal payments and job satisfaction and better motivation is suggested. Participants mentioned that they felt enslaved by patients as a result of being bribed and this resulted in loss of self-esteem. Furthermore, fear of detection was a main demotivating factor. These factors seem to counterbalance the positive effect of financial incentives. Moreover, informal payments were not found to be related to retention of health workers in the public health system. Other factors such as job security seemed to be more relevant for retention. Conclusion This study suggests that the practice of informal payments contributes to the general demotivation of health workers and negatively affects access to health care services and quality of the health system. Policy action is needed that not only

[Influencing factors for reproductive health of female workers in petrochemical industry].

Science.gov (United States)

Kou, Z X; Wang, S L; Chen, Z L; He, Y H; Yu, W L; Mei, L Y; Zhang, H D

2018-02-20

Objective: To investigate the reproductive health status of female workers in petrochemical industry, and to provide a reference for improving reproductive health status and developing preventive and control measures for female workers in petrochemical industry. Methods: A face-to-face questionnaire survey was performed from January to October, 2016. The Questionnaire on Women's Reproductive Health was used to investigate the reproductive health of female workers in petrochemical industry. The multivariate logistic regression model was used to identify the influencing factors for reproductive health of female workers in petrochemical industry. Results: Among the 7485 female workers, 1 268 (40.9%) had abnormal menstrual period, 1 437 (46.4%) had abnormal menstrual volume, 177 (28.5%) had hyperplasia of mammary glands, and 1 807 (24.6%) had gynecological inflammation. The reproductive system diseases in female workers in petrochemical industry were associated with the factors including age, marital status, education level, unhealthy living habits, abortion, overtime work, work shift, workload, video operation, occupational exposure, positive events, and negative events, and among these factors, negative events (odds ratio[ OR ]= 1.856) , unhealthy living habits ( OR =1.542) , and positive events ( OR =1.516) had greater impact on reproductive system diseases. Conclusion: Many chemical substances in the occupational environment of petrochemical industry can cause damage to the reproductive system, which not only affects the health of the female workers, but also poses potential threats to the health of their offspring. Occupational exposure, unhealthy living habits, overtime work, and work shift have great influence on reproductive system diseases in female workers.

Oral health knowledge of health care workers in special children's center.

Science.gov (United States)

Wyne, Amjad; Hammad, Nouf; Splieth, Christian

2015-01-01

To determine the oral health knowledge of health care workers in special children's center. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect following information: demographics, oral hygiene practices, importance of fluoride, dental visits, cause of tooth decay, gingival health, and sources of oral health information. The study was conducted at Riyadh Center for Special Children in Riyadh City from December 2013 to May 2014. All 60 health care workers in the center completed the questionnaire. A great majority (95%) of the workers brushed their teeth twice or more daily. More than two-third (71.7%) of the workers knew that fluoride helps in caries prevention. One in five (21.7%) workers thought that a dental visit only becomes necessary in case of a dental problem. Similarly, 13.3% of the workers thought to "wait till there is some pain in case of a dental cavity" before seeking dental treatment. The workers ranked soft drinks/soda (98.3%), flavored fizzy drinks (60%) and sweetened/flavored milks (43.3%) as top three cariogenic drinks. A great majority (95%) of the workers correctly responded that blood on toothbrush most probably is a sign of "gum disease". Dentists (50%) and media (45%) were the main source of their oral health information. There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in workers' response in relation to their specific job. The special health care workers in the disabled children's center generally had satisfactory oral health knowledge and practices.

Pen of Health Care Worker as Vector of Infection

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Prashant Patil

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Nosocomial infections are the major concern in tertiary hospitals. Health care workers and their belonging are known to act as vector in transmission of infections. In present study, the writing pen of health care workers was worked out for carrying infection. The swab from writing pen of health care workers were cultured for any growth of microorganism and compared with swab from pen of the non health care workers. It was found that the rate of growth of microorganism were more in pen of health care workers. Similarly the organism attributed to the nosocomial infection was grown from the pens of health care workers. These organisms might be transmitted from the hands of health care workers. The writing pen which health care worker are using became the vectors of transmission of infection. So to prevent it, the most important way is to wash the hands and pen properly after examining the patients.

Does workplace health promotion reach shift workers?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nabe-Nielsen, Kirsten; Garde, Anne Helene; Clausen, Thomas

2015-01-01

OBJECTIVES: One reason for health disparities between shift and day workers may be that workplace health promotion does not reach shift workers to the same extent as it reaches day workers. This study aimed to investigate the association between shift work and the availability of and participation...... in workplace health promotion. METHODS: We used cross-sectional questionnaire data from a large representative sample of all employed people in Denmark. We obtained information on the availability of and participation in six types of workplace health promotion. We also obtained information on working hours, ie......). RESULTS: In the general working population, fixed evening and fixed night workers, and employees working variable shifts including night work reported a higher availability of health promotion, while employees working variable shifts without night work reported a lower availability of health promotion...

Restructuring brain drain: strengthening governance and financing for health worker migration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tim K. Mackey

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Health worker migration from resource-poor countries to developed countries, also known as ‘‘brain drain’’, represents a serious global health crisis and a significant barrier to achieving global health equity. Resource-poor countries are unable to recruit and retain health workers for domestic health systems, resulting in inadequate health infrastructure and millions of dollars in healthcare investment losses. Methods: Using acceptable methods of policy analysis, we first assess current strategies aimed at alleviating brain drain and then propose our own global health policy based solution to address current policy limitations. Results: Although governments and private organizations have tried to address this policy challenge, brain drain continues to destabilise public health systems and their populations globally. Most importantly, lack of adequate financing and binding governance solutions continue to fail to prevent health worker brain drain. Conclusions: In response to these challenges, the establishment of a Global Health Resource Fund in conjunction with an international framework for health worker migration could create global governance for stable funding mechanisms encourage equitable migration pathways, and provide data collection that is desperately needed.

Community-based blood pressure measurement by non-health workers using electronic devices: a validation study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel D. Reidpath

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Population monitoring and screening of blood pressure is an important part of any population health strategy. Qualified health workers are expensive and often unavailable for screening. Non-health workers with electronic blood pressure monitors are increasingly used in community-based research. This approach is unvalidated. In a poor, urban community we compared blood pressure measurements taken by non-health workers using electronic devices against qualified health workers using mercury sphygmomanometers. Method: Fifty-six adult volunteers participated in the research. Data were collected by five qualified health workers, and six non-health workers. Participants were randomly allocated to have their blood pressure measured on four consecutive occasions by alternating a qualified health worker with a non-health worker. Descriptive statistics and graphs, and mixed effects linear models to account for the repeated measurement were used in the analysis. Results: Blood pressure readings by non-health workers were more reliable than those taken by qualified health workers. There was no significant difference between the readings taken by qualified health workers and those taken by non-health workers for systolic blood pressure. Non-health workers were, on average, 5–7 mmHg lower in their measures of blood pressure than the qualified health workers (95%HPD: −2.9 to −10.0 for diastolic blood pressure. Conclusion: The results provide empirical evidence that supports the practice of non-health workers using electronic devices for BP measurement in community-based research and screening. Non-health workers recorded blood pressures that differed from qualified health workers by no more than 10 mmHg. The approach is promising, but more research is needed to establish the generalisability of the results.

Health disparities among health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mawn, Barbara; Siqueira, Eduardo; Koren, Ainat; Slatin, Craig; Devereaux Melillo, Karen; Pearce, Carole; Hoff, Lee Ann

2010-01-01

In this article we describe the process of an interdisciplinary case study that examined the social contexts of occupational and general health disparities among health care workers in two sets of New England hospitals and nursing homes. A political economy of the work environment framework guided the study, which incorporated dimensions related to market dynamics, technology, and political and economic power. The purpose of this article is to relate the challenges encountered in occupational health care settings and how these could have impacted the study results. An innovative data collection matrix that guided small-group analysis provided a firm foundation from which to make design modifications to address these challenges. Implications for policy and research include the use of a political and economic framework from which to frame future studies, and the need to maintain rigor while allowing flexibility in design to adapt to challenges in the field.

Towards improving workers' health by matching work and workers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zoer, I.

2014-01-01

From an occupational health perspective, the match between work and workers was the central topic in this thesis. The term ‘work’ was used to encompass a combination of physical, mental and psychosocial work demands. The term ‘workers’ represents the resources of workers, in terms of physical,

Working on reform. How workers' compensation medical care is affected by health care reform.

Science.gov (United States)

Himmelstein, J; Rest, K

1996-01-01

The medical component of workers' compensation programs-now costing over $24 billion annually-and the rest of the nation's medical care system are linked. They share the same patients and providers. They provide similar benefits and services. And they struggle over who should pay for what. Clearly, health care reform and restructuring will have a major impact on the operation and expenditures of the workers' compensation system. For a brief period, during the 1994 national health care reform debate, these two systems were part of the same federal policy development and legislative process. With comprehensive health care reform no longer on the horizon, states now are tackling both workers' compensation and medical system reforms on their own. This paper reviews the major issues federal and state policy makers face as they consider reforms affecting the relationship between workers' compensation and traditional health insurance. What is the relationship of the workers' compensation cost crisis to that in general health care? What strategies are being considered by states involved in reforming the medical component of workers compensation? What are the major policy implications of these strategies?

Knowledge of Rabies Prevention in Vietnamese Public Health and Animal Health Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, K A T; Nguyen, H T T; Pham, T N; Van, K D; Hoang, T V; Olowokure, B

2016-11-01

Rabies is an invariably fatal, but preventable zoonotic disease. Despite a national programme for its prevention and control, the number of rabies associated deaths in Vietnam has increased in recent years. A cross-sectional survey was undertaken in 2012 to assess and compare the knowledge, awareness and practices of 189 public health workers (PHW) and animal health workers (AHW) attending a joint training course for professionals from provinces in northern Vietnam with the highest number of deaths from rabies. Questionnaires facilitating self-evaluation were provided, and total knowledge scores were calculated (maximum 38 points) and categorized into: 'high' (>30 points), 'moderate' (21-30) and 'low' (animal health and public health professionals attending joint training activities aimed at strengthening rabies prevention and control. To ensure effective prevention and control of rabies requires that AHW and PHW not only coordinate and collaborate, but have a common knowledge and understanding of rabies prevention and control measures. This study provides important baseline data in a relatively unexplored area of research that can focus future interventions and research. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

A trial of a job-specific workers' health surveillance program for construction workers: study protocol

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Sluiter Judith K

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Dutch construction workers are offered periodic health examinations. This care can be improved by tailoring this workers health surveillance (WHS to the demands of the job and adjust the preventive actions to the specific health risks of a worker in a particular job. To improve the quality of the WHS for construction workers and stimulate relevant job-specific preventive actions by the occupational physician, we have developed a job-specific WHS. The job-specific WHS consists of modules assessing both physical and psychological requirements. The selected measurement instruments chosen, are based on their appropriateness to measure the workers' capacity and health requirements. They include a questionnaire and biometrical tests, and physical performance tests that measure physical functional capabilities. Furthermore, our job-specific WHS provides occupational physicians with a protocol to increase the worker-behavioural effectiveness of their counselling and to stimulate job-specific preventive actions. The objective of this paper is to describe and clarify our study to evaluate the behavioural effects of this job-specific WHS on workers and occupational physicians. Methods/Design The ongoing study of bricklayers and supervisors is a nonrandomised trial to compare the outcome of an intervention (job-specific WHS group (n = 206 with that of a control (WHS group (n = 206. The study includes a three-month follow-up. The primary outcome measure is the proportion of participants who have undertaken one or more of the preventive actions advised by their occupational physician in the three months after attending the WHS. A process evaluation will be carried out to determine context, reach, dose delivered, dose received, fidelity, and satisfaction. The present study is in accordance with the TREND Statement. Discussion This study will allow an evaluation of the behaviour of both the workers and occupational physician regarding the

Organizational Wellbeing among Workers in Mental Health Services: A Pilot Study.

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Sancassiani, Federica; Campagna, Marcello; Tuligi, Francesco; Machado, Sergio; Cantone, Elisa; Carta, Mauro Giovanni

2015-01-01

Organizational wellbeing in mental health services influences the outcomes of users and their families. Workers should be motivated, have a positive morale and be able to recognize values and the deep meaning of their work. This survey aims to examine the organizational wellbeing of the services provided by the Department of Mental Health (DSM) in Lanusei (Italy) and the correlations between job satisfaction and the psychosomatic health of its workers. Descriptive-correlational study on a population of 43 mental health workers. Organizational wellbeing, as well as workers' job satisfaction and psychosomatic health, were measured using the "Multidimensional Organizational Health Questionnaire" (MOHQ). It is a self-report questionnaire able to examine 14 dimensions of organizational wellbeing, 14 indicators about individual discomfort, 12 indicators about individual wellbeing, 8 psychosomatic symptoms related to job distress. 31 workers (72%) participated in the survey. Regarding the organizational wellbeing of DSM, the general profile mean±sd was 2.66±0.28 (values from 1 to 4: 1=never, 4=often). Job satisfaction was negatively correlated with headaches and concentration difficulties (R=-.584, p=0.001), nervousness, restlessness, anxiety (R=-.571, p=0.001), sense of excessive fatigue (R=-.634, p=0.000) and sense of depression (R=-.558, p=0.001) reported by workers. Data denoted an overall healthy state of the DSM. There were significant correlations between workers' job satisfaction and their psychosomatic health. The recognition and restitution about the weakness and strengths of the services could be useful to point out some organizational development perspectives.

Keys to Successful Community Health Worker Supervision

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Duthie, Patricia; Hahn, Janet S.; Philippi, Evelyn; Sanchez, Celeste

2012-01-01

For many years community health workers (CHW) have been important to the implementation of many of our health system's community health interventions. Through this experience, we have recognized some unique challenges in community health worker supervision and have highlighted what we have learned in order to help other organizations effectively…

Florida Department of Health workers' response to 2004 hurricanes: a qualitative analysis.

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Herberman Mash, Holly B; Fullerton, Carol S; Kowalski-Trakofler, Kathleen; Reissman, Dori B; Scharf, Ted; Shultz, James M; Ursano, Robert J

2013-04-01

Examinations of the demands on public health workers after disaster exposure have been limited. Workers provide emergency care while simultaneously risking injury, damage to personal property, and threats to their own and their family's safety. We examined the disaster management experiences of 4323 Florida Department of Health workers 9 months after their response to 4 hurricanes and 1 tropical storm during a 7-week period in August and September of 2004. Participants completed a self-report questionnaire focused on work performance, mental and physical health, daily functioning, sleep disturbance, physiological arousal, and injury and work demand at the time of the hurricanes, and answered open-ended questions that described their experiences in more detail. A qualitative analysis conducted from the write-in data yielded 4 domains: (1) work/life balance; (2) training for disaster response role; (3) workplace support; and (4) recovery. Study findings highlighted a number of concerns that are important to public health workers who provide emergency care after a disaster and, in particular, multiple disasters such as during the 2004 hurricane season. The findings also yielded important recommendations for emergency public health preparedness.

Informal payments and the quality of health care: Mechanisms revealed by Tanzanian health workers.

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Mæstad, Ottar; Mwisongo, Aziza

2011-02-01

Informal payments for health services are common in many transitional and developing countries. The aim of this paper is to investigate the nature of informal payments in the health sector of Tanzania and to identify mechanisms through which informal payments may affect the quality of health care. Our focus is on the effect of informal payments on health worker behaviours, in particular the interpersonal dynamics among health workers at their workplaces. We organised eight focus groups with 58 health workers representing different cadres and levels of care in one rural and one urban district in Tanzania. We found that health workers at all levels receive informal payments in a number of different contexts. Health workers sometimes share the payments received, but only partially, and more rarely within the cadre than across cadres. Our findings indicate that health workers are involved in 'rent-seeking' activities, such as creating artificial shortages and deliberately lowering the quality of service, in order to extract extra payments from patients or to bargain for a higher share of the payments received by their colleagues. The discussions revealed that many health workers think that the distribution of informal payments is grossly unfair. The findings suggest that informal payments can impact negatively on the quality of health care through rent-seeking behaviours and through frustrations created by the unfair allocation of payments. Interestingly, the presence of corruption may also induce non-corrupt workers to reduce the quality of care. Positive impacts can occur because informal payments may induce health workers to increase their efforts, and maybe more so if there is competition among health workers about receiving the payments. Moreover, informal payments add to health workers' incomes and might thus contribute to retention of health workers within the health sector. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interprofessional collaboration and integration as experienced by social workers in health care.

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Glaser, Brooklyn; Suter, Esther

2016-01-01

Interprofessional collaboration in health care is gaining popularity. This secondary analysis focuses on social workers' experiences on interprofessional teams. The data revealed that social workers perceived overall collaboration as positive. However, concerns were made apparent regarding not having the opportunity to work to full scope and a lack of understanding of social work ideology from other professionals. Both factors seem to impede integration of and collaboration with social workers on health care teams. This study confirms the need to encourage and support health care providers to more fully understand the foundation, role, and efficacy of social work on interprofessional teams.

Care for the caregiver: Stress relief and burnout among health workers in HIV care

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Ruth Atukunda

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Introduction Health care facilities in resource-limited settings are faced with numerous challenges including high patient loads and shortage of trained health workers. However, there still remains a dearth of scientific evidence to assess and address issues associated with stress and burnout among health workers providing HIV care. Methods An annual assessment was conducted using a site capacity assessment tool to evaluate the quality of care at 18 HIV health facilities. Questions to determine stress management and HIV care among health workers were graded from 0–5 (lowest to highest score. Data on performance of health facilities were summarized on an excel sheet. Results Majority of the health facilities (67% did not have polices or practices in place to relieve stress faced by staff in providing care for persons with HIV/AIDS.Less than half of the health facilities (44.4% had policies on PEP, confidential HIV testing and counseling as well as referral for care and treatment for staff that are found to be HIV positive. Conclusion Evaluating and addressing issues associated with stress, burnout, as well as providing HIV care services among health workers in HIV settings is imperative for provision of good quality of care.

[Relationship between occupational stress and mental health in offshore oil platform workers].

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Wu, Hongtao; Xiao, Taiqin; Zou, Jianfang; Shan, Yongle; Li, Zijian

2014-02-01

To investigate the relationship between occupational stress and mental health in offshore oil platform workers and to provide a scientific basis for protection of their mental health. A total of 768 workers on offshore oil platform were surveyed with the Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition and Symptom Check List-90 (SCL-90). The total score of Occupational Role Questionnaire (ORQ) for the workers (160.27±24.63) was significantly lower than the national norm (166.52±27.01) (P 0.05), but the items of recreation, social support, and rational/cognitive found significant difference (P work seniority, education background, drinking, role overload, role insufficiency, role ambiguity, responsibility, physical environment, and rational/cognitive conduct impacted the score of SCL-90 (P mental health of workers on offshore oil platform is related to occupational stress, and role overload, role ambiguity, physical environment, and rational/cognitive conduct, etc, are closely associated with the workers' mental health.

Occupational Allergic Diseases in Kitchen and Health Care Workers: An Underestimated Health Issue

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Ugur Bilge

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. This study evaluated the frequencies of allergic symptoms and rate of upper respiratory infections during the past year in the general population, kitchen workers (KW and health care workers (HCW. Methods. The European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS was used to inquire retrospectively about asthma and asthma-like symptoms and the number of treatments required for previous upper respiratory tract infections (URTI: acute pharyngitis, acute sinusitis, etc. during the past year for health care workers, kitchen workers, and members of the general population. Adjusted odds ratios by gender, age, and smoking status were calculated. Results. 579 subjects (186 from the general population, 205 KW, and 188 HCW; 263 females, 316 males participated in the study. Noninfectious (allergic rhinitis was significantly higher in the HCW and KW groups than in the general population (P<0.001. Cumulative asthma was significantly higher only in the HCW group (P<0.05. In addition, the HCW and KW groups had significantly higher risks of ≥2/year URTI (OR: 1.59, 95% CI: 1.07–2.38 versus OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.05–2.38 than the general population. Conclusion. Occupational allergic respiratory diseases are an important and growing health issue. Health care providers should become familiar with workplace environments and environmental causes of occupational rhinitis and asthma.

The Great Recession and Workers' Health Benefits.

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Koh, Kanghyock

2018-03-01

During a recession, cost-sharing of employer-sponsored health benefits could increase to reduce labor costs in the U.S. Using a variation in the severity of recession shocks across industries, I find evidence that the enrollment rate of high deductible health plans (HDHPs) among workers covered by employer-sponsored health benefits increased more among firms in industries that experienced severe recession shocks. As potential mechanisms, I study employer-side and worker-side mechanisms. I find that employers changed health benefit offerings to force or incentivize workers to enroll in HDHPs. But I find little evidence of an increase in workers' demand for HDHPs due to a reduction in income. These results suggest that the HDHP enrollment rate increased during the Great Recession, as employers tried to save costs of offering health benefits. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How decentralisation influences the retention of primary health care workers in rural Nigeria.

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Abimbola, Seye; Olanipekun, Titilope; Igbokwe, Uchenna; Negin, Joel; Jan, Stephen; Martiniuk, Alexandra; Ihebuzor, Nnenna; Aina, Muyi

2015-01-01

In Nigeria, the shortage of health workers is worst at the primary health care (PHC) level, especially in rural communities. And the responsibility for PHC - usually the only form of formal health service available in rural communities - is shared among the three tiers of government (federal, state, and local governments). In addition, the responsibility for community engagement in PHC is delegated to community health committees. This study examines how the decentralisation of health system governance influences retention of health workers in rural communities in Nigeria from the perspective of health managers, health workers, and people living in rural communities. The study adopted a qualitative approach, and data were collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. The multi-stakeholder data were analysed for themes related to health system decentralisation. The results showed that decentralisation influences the retention of rural health workers in two ways: 1) The salary of PHC workers is often delayed and irregular as a result of delays in transfer of funds from the national to sub-national governments and because one tier of government can blame failure on another tier of government. Further, the primary responsibility for PHC is often left to the weakest tier of government (local governments). And the result is that rural PHC workers are attracted to working at levels of care where salaries are higher and more regular - in secondary care (run by state governments) and tertiary care (run by the federal government), which are also usually in urban areas. 2) Through community health committees, rural communities influence the retention of health workers by working to increase the uptake of PHC services. Community efforts to retain health workers also include providing social, financial, and accommodation support to health workers. To encourage health workers to stay, communities also take the initiative to co-finance and co

[Mental health status in railway female workers and its occupational influencing factors].

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Ji, F L; Liu, Z M; Liu, Z S; Zou, J F; Yu, W L; Li, H M; Li, J; Kong, L M; Jiang, Q

2018-02-20

Objective: To investigate the mental health status of railway female workers and related influencing factors, and to provide a scientific strategy for labor protection regulations in railway female workers. Methods: Cluster sampling was used to select 5033 female workers from Jinan, Nanning, Qinghai-Tibet, and Wuhan railway systems in China from January to August, 2016. A uniform reproductive health questionnaire, as well as the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) , was used to investigate their general information (age, marital status, education level, and family income) , work type (day shift, night shift, or work on shift) , work position, and the presence or absence of exposure to occupational hazardous factors. The score on each factor of SCL-90 and the positive rate of mental health status were calculated. Results: The positive rate of mental health status was 10.6% in railway female workers. The workers exposed to occupational hazardous factors had a significantly higher positive rate of mental health status than those not exposed to occupational hazardous factors (14.20% vs 8.02%, P mental health status between workers with different ages, marital status, education levels, histories of abortion, or annual family income levels ( P mental health problems ( OR =1.797, 95% CI : 1.393-2.318; OR =0.641, 95% CI : 0.498-0.827; OR =0.586, 95% CI : 0.439-0.783; OR =0.580, 95% CI : 0.378-0.890) . Conclusion: Railway female workers have lower levels of mental health than the general population and are under significant occupational stress. Exposure to occupational hazardous factors, night shift, overwork, and carrying heavy objects are associated with the development of mental health problems in railway female workers.

A trial of a job-specific workers' health surveillance program for construction workers: study protocol

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boschman, J.S.; van der Molen, H.F.; van Duivenbooden, C.; Sluiter, J.K.; Frings-Dresen, M.H.W.

2011-01-01

Dutch construction workers are offered periodic health examinations. This care can be improved by tailoring this workers health surveillance (WHS) to the demands of the job and adjust the preventive actions to the specific health risks of a worker in a particular job. To improve the quality of the

Mobility of primary health care workers in China

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Jing Limei

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Rural township health centres and urban community health centres play a crucial role in the delivery of primary health care in China. Over the past two-and-a-half decades, these health institutions have not been as well developed as high-level hospitals. The limited availability and low qualifications of human resources in health are among the main challenges facing lower-level health facilities. This paper aims to analyse the mobility of health workers in township and community health centres. Methods Data used in this paper come from a nationwide survey of health facilities in 2006. Ten provinces in different locations and of varying levels of economic development were selected. From these provinces, 119 rural township health centres and 89 urban community health centres were selected to participate in a questionnaire survey. Thirty key informants were selected from these health facilities to be interviewed. Results In 2005, 8.1% and 8.9% of health workers left township and community health centres, respectively. The health workers in rural township health centres had three to 13 years of work experience and typically had received a formal medical education. The majority of the mobile health workers moved to higher-level health facilities; very few moved to other rural township health centres. The rates of workers leaving township and community health centres increased between 2000 and 2005, with the main reasons for leaving being low salaries, limited opportunities for professional development and poor living conditions. Conclusion In China, primary health workers in township health centres and community health centres move to higher-level facilities due to low salaries, limited opportunities for promotion and poor living conditions. The government already has policies in place to counteract this migration, but it must step up enforcement if rural township health centres and urban community centres are to retain health

Implementation of Brazil's "family health strategy": factors associated with community health workers', nurses', and physicians' delivery of drug use services.

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Spector, Anya Y; Pinto, Rogério M; Rahman, Rahbel; da Fonseca, Aline

2015-05-01

Brazil's "family health strategy" (ESF), provides primary care, mostly to individuals in impoverished communities through teams of physicians, nurses, and community health workers (CHWs). ESF workers are called upon to offer drug use services (e.g., referrals, counseling) as drug use represents an urgent public health crisis. New federal initiatives are being implemented to build capacity in this workforce to deliver drug use services, yet little is known about whether ESF workers are providing drug use services already. Guided by social cognitive theory, this study examines factors associated with ESF workers' provision of drug use services. Cross-sectional surveys were collected from 262 ESF workers (168 CHWs, 62 nurses, and 32 physicians) in Mesquita, Rio de Janeiro State and Santa Luzia, Minas Gerais State. provision of drug-use services. capacity to engage in evidence-based practice (EBP), resource constraints, peer support, knowledge of EBP, and job title. Logistic regression was used to determine relative influence of each predictor upon the outcome. Thirty-nine percent reported providing drug use services. Younger workers, CHWs, workers with knowledge about EBP and workers that report peer support were more likely to offer drug use services. Workers that reported resource constraints and more capacity to implement EBP were less likely to offer drug use services. ESF workers require education in locating, assessing and evaluating the latest research. Mentorship from physicians and peer support through team meetings may enhance workers' delivery of drug use services, across professional disciplines. Educational initiatives aimed at ESF teams should consider these factors as potentially enhancing implementation of drug use services. Building ESF workers' capacity to collaborate across disciplines and to gain access to tools for providing assessment and treatment of drug use issues may improve uptake of new initiatives. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All

Effective communication approaches in tuberculosis control: Health workers' perceptions and experiences.

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Arulchelvan, Sriram; Elangovan, Rengan

2017-10-01

Health workers' experiences and understanding of the myths, misconceptions, beliefs about TB, and patients in the community (and effective communication methods) can be useful in designing effective IEC materials and strategies. To study the perceptions and experiences of health workers regarding TB disease, patients, and effective communication strategies in TB control. A survey was conducted among health workers involved in Directly Observed Treatment Short (DOTS) course. Data regarding general health beliefs, prevalent myths and misconceptions about TB in their respective localities, knowledge level among patients, and utilization of various communication strategies were collected. There is a significant increase in knowledge about TB during DOTS among patients, as observed by about half of the health workers. TB patients are aware about how TB spreads to others and their responsibilities. Regular interaction with patients is required for treatment adherence. Two thirds of the health workers believe that media-mix strategy can be very effective in creating awareness among the patients as well as the public. Health workers realized that the video player facility on their mobile phones is useful for showing health-related videos. A combination of mass media and interpersonal communication could be effective for TB control. Face-to-face communication with community members, patient-provider discussions, and information through television could be very effective techniques. Exclusive communication materials should be designed for family members of the patients. Smart phones can be used for effective implementation of TB control programs. Copyright © 2016 Tuberculosis Association of India. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Health problems and illness of female workers in textile industries].

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Soonthorndhada, K

1989-07-01

This paper examines 3 major health-related issues: 1) existing health problems and illnesses resulting from physical environmental conditions at workplaces; 2) female workers' perception on illness and health protection; and 3) the relationship between illness and risk factors. The study area is textile factories in Bangkok and its peripheries. Data are drawn from the 1987 Survey of Occupational Health and Textile Industrial Development in Thailand: Effect on Health and Socioeconomics of Female Migrant Workers. This study shows that about 20% of female workers have ill-health problems and illness after a period of working mainly due to high levels of dust and noise, and inadequate light. These conditions are hazardous to the respiratory system (resulting in cough and chest tightness), the hearing system (pains as well as impaired and hearing loss), eye systems (irritation, reduced visual capacity) and skin allergy. Such illnesses are intensified in the long- run. The analysis of variances reveals that education, section of work, perception (particularly mask and ear plug) significantly affect these illnesses. This study concludes that health education and occupational health should be provided in factories with emphasis on health prevention and promotion.

Frequency of COPD in health care workers who smoke

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Ivan Kopitovic

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: COPD is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Health care providers should counsel their smoking patients with COPD to quit smoking as the first treatment step. However, in countries with high prevalences of smoking, health care workers may also be smokers. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and severity of COPD in health care workers who smoke. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. All health care workers who smoke, from nine health care centers in Serbia, were invited to participate in the study and perform spirometry. The diagnosis of COPD was based on a post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio of < 0.70. All patients completed the COPD Assessment Test and the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence. Results: The study involved 305 subjects, and 47 (15.4% were male. The mean age of the participants was 49.0 ± 6.5 years. Spirometry revealed obstructive ventilatory defect in 33 subjects (10.8%; restrictive ventilatory defect, in 5 (1.6%; and small airway disease, in 96 (31.5%. A diagnosis of COPD was made in 29 patients (9.5%, 25 (86.2% of whom were newly diagnosed. On the basis of the Global Initiative for COPD guidelines, most COPD patients belonged to groups A or B (n = 14; 48.2%, for both; 1 belonged to group D (3.6%; and none, to group C. Very high nicotine dependence was more common in those with COPD than in those without it (20.7% vs. 5.4%, p = 0.01. Conclusions: In this sample of health care workers, the frequency of COPD was comparable with that in the general population. The presence of COPD in health care workers who smoke was associated with higher nicotine dependence.

Knowledge Level and Attitude of Health Care Workers About HIV/AIDS

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Ayse Ižnci

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Aim: In this study,it was aimed to investigate the level of knowledge and attitudes of healty care workers about HIV/AIDS. Material and Method: Data on knowledge and attitude of health care workers about HIV/AIDS was collected with a questionnaire. Results:This research was carried out on 230 health care workers (36 doctors, 194 nurses to investigate their knowledge and attidudes on HIV/AIDS. All of the participants knew that HIV/AIDS is an infectious disease,while 90.4 % of the participants stated that HIV/AIDS can be transmitted sexually.76.5 % of the participants stated they found their work risky for HIV/AIDS. Discussion:These findings have provided a data for educational programs designed for healty care workers. We belive that education programs for healty care workers will be effecive to control HIV/AIDS.

[Accidents with biological material in health care workers in 2 primary health care areas (1990-1999)].

Science.gov (United States)

Hernández Navarrete, M J; Montes Villameriel, F J; Solano Bernad, V M; Sánchez Matienzo, D; del Val García, J L; Gil Montalbán, E; Arribas Llorente, J L

2001-09-15

To find out the exposures with biological material in health care workers in primary health care, registered in the biological accidents database from Preventive Medicine Service in Miguel Servet Universitary Hospital of Zaragoza. Descriptive study of a retrospective cohort. SITE: Primary health care, Areas II and V of Zaragoza.Participants. Workers in this areas, distributed by: physician, nursing staff, auxiliary, orderly, housekeeping staff, others. Data of: workers, accident, serologic source, worker protection and vaccinal status of hepatitis B. The incidence of accidents was 26 (period 1997-1999). Most proportion of accidents were declared by nursing (78%). The highest occupational incidence was in auxiliary (63 ). In 90,1% of the cases, the accident was needlestick injury. The source was known in 67,7% of cases. The accidents occurred in hands in 96,8% of cases, and only one third of workers carried gloves. Results obtained are similar with previous studies about this event. We must insist on the need to declare these accidents, providing more information and accessibility for the declaration to worker. Moreover, we must insist on the correct application in the health care field of the standard precautions, because almost 50% of accidents are evitable, and to increase hepatitis B vaccination covertures.

Health and safety of the older worker.

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Farrow, A; Reynolds, F

2012-01-01

In the UK, increasing numbers of paid employees are over 60 years with further increases expected as the state pension age rises. Some concern surrounds possible increased work-related illness and accidents for people working beyond the age of 60. To identify the available evidence for health and safety risks of workers over age 60 years with respect to factors associated with injuries and accidents. Databases searched included PUBMED, OSHUpdate, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSHTIC-2), SafetyLit, the UK The Health and Safety Executive (HSELINE) and the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety until December 2009. Inclusion criteria were workers aged over 60 years. Findings were grouped into occupational accidents and injuries and individual and workplace factors that may have influenced risk of injury to the over-60s. Very little direct evidence was found concerning safety practices and health risks of workers over age 60. Some safety risks were associated with specific physical declines such as age-related hearing loss. Overall, these workers had fewer accidents and injuries but these were more likely to be serious or fatal when they occurred. There was no strong evidence that work patterns, including shift work or overtime, affected safety. Protective, compensatory strategies or experience may maintain safe working practices. Implications for health and safety risks cannot be assessed without longitudinal research on workforces with substantial numbers of workers over age 60 in order to address the healthy worker effect.

Human rights and health disparities for migrant workers in the UAE.

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Sönmez, Sevil; Apostolopoulos, Yorghos; Tran, Diane; Rentrope, Shantyana

2011-12-15

Systematic violations of migrant workers' human rights and striking health disparities among these populations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are the norm in member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Migrant laborers comprise about 90 percent of the UAE workforce and include approximately 500,000 construction workers and 450,000 domestic workers. Like many other GCC members countries, the UAE witnessed an unprecedented construction boom during the early 2000s, attracting large numbers of Western expatriates and increasing demand for cheap migrant labor. Elite Emiratis' and Western expatriates' dependence on household staff further promoted labor migration. This paper offers a summary of existing literature on migrant workers and human rights in the UAE, focusing on their impact on related health ramifications and disparities, with specific attention to construction workers, domestic workers, and trafficked women and children. Construction workers and domestic laborers are victims of debt bondage and face severe wage exploitation, and experience serious health and safety problems resulting from inhumane work and living conditions. High rates of physical, sexual, and psychological abuse impact the health of domestic workers. Through a review of available literature, including official reports, scientific papers, and media reports, the paper discusses the responsibility of employers, governments, and the global community in mitigating these problems and reveals the paucity of systematic data on the health of migrant workers in the Gulf. Copyright © 2011 Sonmez, Apostolopoulos, Tran, and Rentrope. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Challenges in tuberculosis care in Western Uganda: Health care worker and patient perspectives

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Ashley Wynne

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Uganda is one of the high burden countries that contribute 80% of the world’s tuberculosis (TB burden. Health care worker and patient perspectives provide valuable insight into gaps between policy and practice within tuberculosis control program. This study was part of a larger mixed-methods study to explore knowledge and stigma around HIV, TB and TB/HIV co-infection. We conducted a secondary analysis of the qualitative data. Findings related to challenges faced by health care workers and patients. Patient’s identified delays in diagnosis and financial burden associated with TB treatment. Health care workers called for more training on TB and TB/HIV co-infection, and identified poor referral practices between health units and lack of program funding resulting in the abandonment of DOTS programs. Training for health care workers is needed to better manage TB/HIV co-infected patients. Overall health system strengthening is needed, including referral systems tracking patients between health centers.

Current patient and healthcare worker attitudes to eHealth and the personally controlled electronic health record in major hospitals.

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Armani, R; Mitchell, L E; Allen-Graham, J; Heriot, N R; Kotsimbos, T; Wilson, J W

2016-06-01

The current health system in Australia is comprised of both electronic- and paper-based medical records. The Federal Government has approved funding for the development of an individual health identifier and a universally adopted online health repository. To determine attitudes and beliefs of patients and healthcare workers regarding the use of stored medical information and the personally controlled electronic health record (PCEHR) in selected major hospitals in Victoria. Qualitative survey of patients and healthcare workers (n = 600 each group) conducted during 2014 across five major hospitals in Melbourne to measure the awareness, attitudes and barriers to electronic health and the PCEHR. Of the patients, 93.3% support the concept of a shared electronic healthcare record, 33.7% were aware of the PCEHR and only 11% had registered. The majority of healthcare workers believed that the presence of a shared health record would result in an increased appropriateness of care and patient safety by reducing adverse drug events and improving the timeliness of care provided. However, only 46% of healthcare workers were aware of the PCEHR. This study provides a baseline evaluation of perceptions surrounding eHealth and PCHER in acute health services in five metropolitan centres. While there appears to be a readiness for adoption of these strategies for healthcare documentation, patients require motivation to register for the PCEHR, and healthcare workers require more information on the potential benefits to them to achieve more timely and efficient care. © 2016 Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

Heat stress management program improving worker health and operational effectiveness: a case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Huss, Rosalyn G; Skelton, Scott B; Alvis, Kimberly L; Shane, Leigh A

2013-03-01

Heat stress monitoring is a vital component of an effective health and safety program when employees work in exceptionally warm environments. Workers at hazardous waste sites often wear personal protective equipment (PPE), which increases the body heat stress load. No specific Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations address heat stress; however, OSHA does provide several guidance documents to assist employers in addressing this serious workplace health hazard. This article describes a heat stress and surveillance plan implemented at a hazardous waste site as part of the overall health and safety program. The PPE requirement for work at this site, coupled with extreme environmental temperatures, made heat stress a significant concern. Occupational health nurses and industrial hygienists developed a monitoring program for heat stress designed to prevent the occurrence of significant heat-related illness in site workers. The program included worker education on the signs of heat-related illness and continuous physiologic monitoring to detect early signs of heat-related health problems. Biological monitoring data were collected before workers entered the exclusion zone and on exiting the zone following decontamination. Sixty-six site workers were monitored throughout site remediation. More than 1,700 biological monitoring data points were recorded. Outcomes included improved worker health and safety, and increased operational effectiveness. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

Factors influencing motivation and job satisfaction among supervisors of community health workers in marginalized communities in South Africa

OpenAIRE

Akintola, Olagoke; Chikoko, Gamuchirai

2016-01-01

Background Management and supervision of community health workers are factors that are?critical to the success of community health worker programmes. Yet few studies have explored the perspectives of supervisors in these programmes. This study explored factors influencing motivations of supervisors in community health worker programmes. Methods We conducted qualitative interviews with 26 programme staff providing supervision to community health workers in eight community-based organizations i...

Oral health knowledge of health care workers in special children’s center

Science.gov (United States)

Wyne, Amjad; Hammad, Nouf; Splieth, Christian

2015-01-01

Objective: To determine the oral health knowledge of health care workers in special children’s center. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect following information: demographics, oral hygiene practices, importance of fluoride, dental visits, cause of tooth decay, gingival health, and sources of oral health information. The study was conducted at Riyadh Center for Special Children in Riyadh City from December 2013 to May 2014. Results: All 60 health care workers in the center completed the questionnaire. A great majority (95%) of the workers brushed their teeth twice or more daily. More than two-third (71.7%) of the workers knew that fluoride helps in caries prevention. One in five (21.7%) workers thought that a dental visit only becomes necessary in case of a dental problem. Similarly, 13.3% of the workers thought to “wait till there is some pain in case of a dental cavity” before seeking dental treatment. The workers ranked soft drinks/soda (98.3%), flavored fizzy drinks (60%) and sweetened/flavored milks (43.3%) as top three cariogenic drinks. A great majority (95%) of the workers correctly responded that blood on toothbrush most probably is a sign of “gum disease”. Dentists (50%) and media (45%) were the main source of their oral health information. There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in workers’ response in relation to their specific job. Conclusion: The special health care workers in the disabled children’s center generally had satisfactory oral health knowledge and practices. PMID:25878636

Health and Occupational Outcomes Among Injured, Nonstandard Shift Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Imelda S; Smith, Peter M; Mustard, Cameron A; Gignac, Monique A M

2015-11-01

This study compares health and occupational outcomes following a work-related injury for nonstandard and day-shift workers. National Population Health Survey data were used to explore outcomes 2 years post-work injury. Retrospective-matched cohort analyses examined main effects and interactions of shift schedule and work injury with changes in health, shift schedule, and labor force status. Models were adjusted for respondent characteristics, baseline health status, and occupational strength requirements. Injured nonstandard shift workers reported lower health utility index scores, compared with uninjured and injured daytime workers and uninjured nonstandard-shift workers. No significant interactions between shift and injury were found with schedule change and leaving the labor force. Injured nonstandard-shift workers are as likely to remain employed as other groups, but may be vulnerable in terms of diminished health.

Motivation Types and Mental Health of UK Hospitality Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotera, Yasuhiro; Adhikari, Prateek; Van Gordon, William

2018-01-01

The primary purposes of this study were to (i) assess levels of different types of work motivation in a sample of UK hospitality workers and make a cross-cultural comparison with Chinese counterparts and (ii) identify how work motivation and shame-based attitudes towards mental health explain the variance in mental health problems in UK hospitality workers. One hundred three UK hospitality workers completed self-report measures, and correlation and multiple regression analyses were conducted to identify significant relationships. Findings demonstrate that internal and external motivation levels were higher in UK versus Chinese hospitality workers. Furthermore, external motivation was more significantly associated with shame and mental health problems compared to internal motivation. Motivation accounted for 34-50% of mental health problems. This is the first study to explore the relationship between motivation, shame, and mental health in UK hospitality workers. Findings suggest that augmenting internal motivation may be a novel means of addressing mental health problems in this worker population.

Knowledge of Health Care Workers in a Nigerian Tertiary Health ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Percutaneous transmission of HIV is a significant occupational risk among health workers. Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for HIV is an intervention that is recommended for people at risk of accidental exposure to HIV. The objective of this study was to determine the knowledge of health care workers in OOUTH, Sagamu ...

Occupational health care of radiation exposed workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdul Rahim Rahman Hamzah

1995-01-01

The medical problems encountered by the earlier pioneer workers in radiation at the turn of the century are well known. In the 1928, the ICRP (International Committee for Radiological Protection) was instituted and the ALARA principle of radiation protection was evolved. Occupational health care is about maintaining the health and safety of workers in their workplaces. This involves using medical, nursing and engineering practices to achieve its objectives. In certain occupations, including those where workers are exposed to ionising radiation, some of these principles are enshrined in the legislation and would require statutory compliance. Occupational health care of radiation workers seek to prevent ill health arising from exposure to radiation by consolidating the benefits of exposures control and dosimetry. This is via health surveillance for spillages, contamination and exposures to unsealed sources of radiation. It is unlikely that can plan and hope to cater for a Chernobyl type of disaster. However, for the multitude of workers in industry exposed to radiation, control models are available. These are from the more in industrialize countries with a nuclear based energy industry, and where radioactive gadgetry are used in places ranging from factories and farms to construction sites. These models involve statutory requirements on the standard of work practices, assessment of fitness to work and the monitoring of both the worker and the workplace. A similar framework of activity is present in Malaysia. This will be further enhanced with the development of her general health and safety at work legislation. (author)

On the front line of primary health care: the profile of community health workers in rural Quechua communities in Peru.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Angela; Malca, Rosa; Zumaran, Adriana; Miranda, J Jaime

2006-05-17

To describe the profile of community health workers--health promoters, traditional birth attendants and traditional healers--in rural Quechua communities from Ayacucho, Peru. Basic quantitative and qualitative information was gathered as part of a community health project implemented between 1997 and 2002 in 40 Andean communities with information from questionnaires, personal interviews and group discussions. The majority of current community health workers are men with limited education who are primarily Quechua speakers undertaking their work on a voluntary basis. Health promoters are mostly young, male, high school graduates. There exists a high drop-out rate among these workers. In contrast, traditional healers and traditional birth attendants possess an almost diametrically opposite profile in terms of age, education and drop-out rates, though males still predominate. At the community level the health promoters are the most visible community health workers. It is very important to consider and to be aware of the profile of community health workers in order to provide appropriate alternatives when working with these groups as well as with the indigenous population, particularly in terms of culture, language and gender issues.

Health worker preferences for performance-based payment schemes in a rural health district in Burkina Faso

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maurice Yé

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background: One promising way to improve the motivation of healthcare providers and the quality of healthcare services is performance-based incentives (PBIs also referred as performance-based financing. Our study aims to explore healthcare providers’ preferences for an incentive scheme based on local resources, which aimed at improving the quality of maternal and child health care in the Nouna Health District. Design: A qualitative and quantitative survey was carried out in 2010 involving 94 healthcare providers within 34 health facilities. In addition, in-depth interviews involving a total of 33 key informants were conducted at health facility levels. Results: Overall, 85% of health workers were in favour of an incentive scheme based on the health district's own financial resources (95% CI: [71.91; 88.08]. Most health workers (95 and 96% expressed a preference for financial incentives (95% CI: [66.64; 85.36] and team-based incentives (95% CI: [67.78; 86.22], respectively. The suggested performance indicators were those linked to antenatal care services, prevention of mother-to-child human immunodeficiency virus transmission, neonatal care, and immunization. Conclusions: The early involvement of health workers and other stakeholders in designing an incentive scheme proved to be valuable. It ensured their effective participation in the process and overall acceptance of the scheme at the end. This study is an important contribution towards the designing of effective PBI schemes.

Migrant Workers and Their Occupational Health and Safety.

Science.gov (United States)

Moyce, Sally C; Schenker, Marc

2018-04-01

In 2015, approximately 244 million people were transnational migrants, approximately half of whom were workers, often engaged in jobs that are hazardous to their health. They work for less pay, for longer hours, and in worse conditions than do nonmigrants and are often subject to human rights violations, abuse, human trafficking, and violence. Worldwide, immigrant workers have higher rates of adverse occupational exposures and working conditions, which lead to poor health outcomes, workplace injuries, and occupational fatalities. Health disparities of immigrant workers are related to environmental and occupational exposures and are a result of language/cultural barriers, access to health care, documentation status, and the political climate of the host country. Recommendations on global and local scales are offered as potential solutions to improving the health of immigrant workers.

Assessment of the quality of antenatal care services provided by health workers using a mobile phone decision support application in northern Nigeria: a pre/post-intervention study.

Science.gov (United States)

McNabb, Marion; Chukwu, Emeka; Ojo, Oluwayemisi; Shekhar, Navendu; Gill, Christopher J; Salami, Habeeb; Jega, Farouk

2015-01-01

Given the shortage of skilled healthcare providers in Nigeria, frontline community health extension workers (CHEWs) are commonly tasked with providing maternal and child health services at primary health centers. In 2012, we introduced a mobile case management and decision support application in twenty primary health centers in northern Nigeria, and conducted a pre-test/post-test study to assess whether the introduction of the app had an effect on the quality of antenatal care services provided by this lower-level cadre. Using the CommCare mobile platform, the app dynamically guides CHEWs through antenatal care protocols and collects client data in real time. Thirteen health education audio clips are also embedded in the app for improving and standardizing client counseling. To detect changes in quality, we developed an evidence-based quality score consisting of 25 indicators, and conducted a total of 266 client exit interviews. We analyzed baseline and endline data to assess changes in the overall quality score as well as changes in the provision of key elements of antenatal care. Overall, the quality score increased from 13.3 at baseline to 17.2 at endline (pmobile case management and decision support application can spur behavior change and improve the quality of services provided by a lower level cadre of healthcare workers. Future research should employ a more rigorous experimental design to explore potential longer-term effects on client health outcomes.

Large-scale mHealth professional support for health workers in rural Maharashtra, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Hegde, Shailendra Kumar B; Saride, Sriranga Prasad; Kuruganty, Sudha; Banker, Niraja; Patil, Chetan; Phanse, Vishal

2018-04-01

Expanding mobile telephony in India has prompted interest in the potential of mobile-telephone health (mHealth) in linking health workers in rural areas with specialist medical advice and other professional services. In 2012, a toll-free helpline offering specialist medical advice to community-based health workers throughout Maharashtra was launched. Calls are handled via a 24 h centre in Pune, staffed by health advisory officers and medical specialists. Health advisory officers handle general queries, which include medical advice via validated algorithms; blood on-call services; grievance issues; and mental health support - the latter calls are transferred to a qualified counsellor. Calls requiring more specialist advice are transferred to the appropriate medical specialist. This paper describes the experience of the first 4 years of this helpline, in terms of the services used, callers, nature of calls, types of queries serviced and lessons learnt. In the first 4 years of the helpline, 669 265 calls were serviced. Of these calls, 453 373 (67.74%) needed medical advice and were handled by health advisory officers. Specialist services were required to address 199 226 (29.77%) calls. Blood-bank-related services accounted for 7919 (1.18%) calls, while 2462 (0.37%) were grievance calls. Counselling for mental health issues accounted for 6285 (0.94%) calls. The large-scale mHealth professional support provided by this helpline in Maharashtra has reached many health workers serving rural communities. Future work is required to explore ways to expand the reach of the helpline further and to measure its effectiveness in improving health outcomes.

Assessment of the quality of antenatal care services provided by health workers using a mobile phone decision support application in northern Nigeria: a pre/post-intervention study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marion McNabb

Full Text Available Given the shortage of skilled healthcare providers in Nigeria, frontline community health extension workers (CHEWs are commonly tasked with providing maternal and child health services at primary health centers. In 2012, we introduced a mobile case management and decision support application in twenty primary health centers in northern Nigeria, and conducted a pre-test/post-test study to assess whether the introduction of the app had an effect on the quality of antenatal care services provided by this lower-level cadre.Using the CommCare mobile platform, the app dynamically guides CHEWs through antenatal care protocols and collects client data in real time. Thirteen health education audio clips are also embedded in the app for improving and standardizing client counseling. To detect changes in quality, we developed an evidence-based quality score consisting of 25 indicators, and conducted a total of 266 client exit interviews. We analyzed baseline and endline data to assess changes in the overall quality score as well as changes in the provision of key elements of antenatal care.Overall, the quality score increased from 13.3 at baseline to 17.2 at endline (p<0.0001, out of a total possible score of 25, with the most significant improvements related to health counseling, technical services provided, and quality of health education.These study results suggest that the introduction of a low-cost mobile case management and decision support application can spur behavior change and improve the quality of services provided by a lower level cadre of healthcare workers. Future research should employ a more rigorous experimental design to explore potential longer-term effects on client health outcomes.

Travel vaccines: Information for health care workers | Schellack ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This review briefly examines some of the important vaccine preventable diseases related to travel. We then outline diseases known to Africa and other similar parts of the world, and potential approaches for preventing these conditions. The paper provides practical advice for health care workers when consulting with the ...

The proper contributions of social workers in health practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Huntington, J

1986-01-01

Current and potential future contributions of social workers to health practice are considered at the three levels of direct service to patients, influence on the processes and procedures of the health setting and influence on its future planning and service development. The capacity of U.S.A. and U.K. social work to contribute at these levels is compared in the light of their contrasting relationships to the health system. U.S.A. social work in health care is practised as employees of the health setting or as private practitioners and contains the majority of U.S.A. social workers. It remains a specialism that sustains a major body of published work, commitment to knowledge-building, standard setting and performance review, and a psycho-social orientation shared by a growing number of medical and nursing professionals. Its approach to the health system is that of the pursuit of professional credibility in the secondary setting by adopting the professional-technical practice model of the clinician. U.K. social work since the early 1970s has been committed to generic education and practice and to the development of its own primary setting in social services departments which now employ almost all U.K. social workers. Area team social work in these departments, typified by statutory work with the most deprived sections of the population, has become the dominant culture of British social work, with implications for the occupational identity and career prospects of those social workers who are outposted or attached to health settings but no longer employed by them. British social work and its management now approach the health system from a position of organizational independence which should strengthen their capacity to influence the health system. The cultural differences between social work and medicine, however, are experienced more keenly than ever as many social workers adopt a socio-political practice model that is at odds with the professional-technical model

A model for the adoption of ICT by health workers in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Jimoh, Lanrewaju; Pate, Muhammad A; Lin, Li; Schulman, Kevin A

2012-11-01

To investigate the potential of information and communication technology (ICT) adoption among maternal and child health workers in rural Nigeria. A prospective, quantitative survey design was used to collect data from quasi-randomly selected clusters of 25 rural health facilities in 5 of the 36 states in Nigeria over a 2-month period from June to July 2010. A total of 200 maternal and child health workers were included in the survey, and the data were analyzed using a modified theory of acceptance model (TAM). There was no significant difference between ICT knowledge and attitude scores across states. There were significant differences in perceived ease of use (PICT application in health varied across worker groups and conflicted with government/employer priorities. Although the objective of this study was exploratory, the results provide insight into the intricacies involved in the deployment of ICT in low-resource settings. Use of an expanded TAM should be considered as a mandatory part of any pre-implementation study of ICT among health workers in sub-Saharan Africa. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Providing mental health first aid in the workplace: a Delphi consensus study.

Science.gov (United States)

Bovopoulos, Nataly; Jorm, Anthony F; Bond, Kathy S; LaMontagne, Anthony D; Reavley, Nicola J; Kelly, Claire M; Kitchener, Betty A; Martin, Angela

2016-08-02

Mental health problems are common in the workplace, but workers affected by such problems are not always well supported by managers and co-workers. Guidelines exist for the public on how to provide mental health first aid, but not specifically on how to tailor one's approach if the person of concern is a co-worker or employee. A Delphi consensus study was carried out to develop guidelines on additional considerations required when offering mental health first aid in a workplace context. A systematic search of websites, books and journal articles was conducted to develop a questionnaire with 246 items containing actions that someone may use to offer mental health first aid to a co-worker or employee. Three panels of experts from English-speaking countries were recruited (23 consumers, 26 managers and 38 workplace mental health professionals), who independently rated the items over three rounds for inclusion in the guidelines. The retention rate of the expert panellists across the three rounds was 61.7 %. Of the 246 items, 201 items were agreed to be important or very important by at least 80 % of panellists. These 201 endorsed items included actions on how to approach and offer support to a co-worker, and additional considerations where the person assisting is a supervisor or manager, or is assisting in crisis situations such as acute distress. The guidelines outline strategies for a worker to use when they are concerned about the mental health of a co-worker or employee. They will be used to inform future tailoring of Mental Health First Aid training when it is delivered in workplace settings and could influence organisational policies and procedures.

The home health workforce: a distinction between worker categories.

Science.gov (United States)

Stone, Robyn; Sutton, Janet P; Bryant, Natasha; Adams, Annelise; Squillace, Marie

2013-01-01

The demand for home health aides is expected to rise, despite concerns about the sustainability of this workforce. Home health workers receive low wages and little training and have high turnover. It is difficult to recruit and retain workers to improve clinical outcomes. This study presents national estimates to examine how home health workers and the subgroup of workers differ in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, compensation, benefits, satisfaction, and retention. Hospice aides fare better than other categories of workers and are less likely to leave their job. Policymakers should consider strategies to increase the quality and stability of this workforce.

Vaccinating health care workers against influenza: the ethical and legal rationale for a mandate.

Science.gov (United States)

Ottenberg, Abigale L; Wu, Joel T; Poland, Gregory A; Jacobson, Robert M; Koenig, Barbara A; Tilburt, Jon C

2011-02-01

Despite improvements in clinician education, symptom awareness, and respiratory precautions, influenza vaccination rates for health care workers have remained unacceptably low for more than three decades, adversely affecting patient safety. When public health is jeopardized, and a safe, low-cost, and effective method to achieve patient safety exists, health care organizations and public health authorities have a responsibility to take action and change the status quo. Mandatory influenza vaccination for health care workers is supported not only by scientific data but also by ethical principles and legal precedent. The recent influenza pandemic provides an opportunity for policymakers to reconsider the benefits of mandating influenza vaccination for health care workers, including building public trust, enhancing patient safety, and strengthening the health care workforce.

Violence against health workers in Family Medicine Centers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Al-Turki N

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Nouf Al-Turki,1 Ayman AM Afify,1 Mohammed AlAteeq2 1Family Medicine Department, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, 2Department of Family Medicine and PHC, King Abdul-Aziz Medical City, National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Background: Health care violence is a significant worldwide problem with negative consequences on both the safety and well-being of health care workers as well as workplace activities. Reports examining health care violence in Saudi Arabia are limited and the results are conflicting.Objective: To estimate the prevalence and determine the demographic and occupational characteristics associated with workplace violence in primary care centers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.Methods: A cross-sectional study included 270 health care workers in 12 family medicine centers in Riyadh during November and December 2014. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to estimate the frequency, timing, causes, reactions, and consequences of workplace violence plus participants’ demographic and occupational data.Results: A total 123 health care workers (45.6% experienced some kind of violence over 12 months prior to the study. These included physical (6.5% and nonphysical violence (99.2%, including verbal violence (94.3% and intimidation (22.0%. Offenders were patients (71.5% in the majority of cases, companions (20.3%, or both (3.3%. Almost half (48.0% of health care workers who experienced violence did nothing, 38.2% actively reported the event, and 13.8% consulted a colleague. A significant association of workplace violence was found with working multiple shifts, evening or night shift, and lack of an encouraging environment to report violence.Conclusion: Workplace violence is still a significant problem in primary care centers. The high frequency of violence together with underreporting may indicate the inefficiency of the current safety program. More safety programs and training activities for health care

From Worker Health To Citizen Health: Moving Upstream

Science.gov (United States)

Sepulveda, Martin-Jose

2014-01-01

New rapid growth economies, urbanization, health systems crises and “big data” are causing fundamental changes in social structures and systems including health. These forces for change have significant consequences for occupational and environmental medicine and will challenge the specialty to think beyond workers and workplaces as the principal locus of innovation for health and performance. These trends are placing great emphasis on upstream strategies for addressing the complex systems dynamics of the social determinants of health. The need to engage systems in communities for healthier workforces is a shift in orientation from worker and workplace centric to citizen and community centric. This change for occupational and environmental medicine requires extending systems approaches in the workplace to communities which are systems of systems and which require different skills, data, tools and partnerships. PMID:24284749

Job-specific workers’ health surveillance for construction workers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boschman, J.S.

2013-01-01

Workers’ health surveillance (WHS) aims at the assessment of workers’ health and work ability by detecting any clinical or preclinical abnormalities. In that way, it can be verified whether the occupational exposures have any detrimental effect on the health of workers and whether the worker is fit

Reducing stigma among healthcare providers to improve mental health services (RESHAPE): protocol for a pilot cluster randomized controlled trial of a stigma reduction intervention for training primary healthcare workers in Nepal.

Science.gov (United States)

Kohrt, Brandon A; Jordans, Mark J D; Turner, Elizabeth L; Sikkema, Kathleen J; Luitel, Nagendra P; Rai, Sauharda; Singla, Daisy R; Lamichhane, Jagannath; Lund, Crick; Patel, Vikram

2018-01-01

Non-specialist healthcare providers, including primary and community healthcare workers, in low- and middle-income countries can effectively treat mental illness. However, scaling-up mental health services within existing health systems has been limited by barriers such as stigma against people with mental illness. Therefore, interventions are needed to address attitudes and behaviors among non-specialists. Aimed at addressing this gap, RE ducing S tigma among H ealthc A re P roviders to Improv E mental health services (RESHAPE) is an intervention in which social contact with mental health service users is added to training for non-specialist healthcare workers integrating mental health services into primary healthcare. This protocol describes a mixed methods pilot and feasibility study in primary care centers in Chitwan, Nepal. The qualitative component will include key informant interviews and focus group discussions. The quantitative component consists of a pilot cluster randomized controlled trial (c-RCT), which will establish parameters for a future effectiveness study of RESHAPE compared to training as usual (TAU). Primary healthcare facilities (the cluster unit, k  = 34) will be randomized to TAU or RESHAPE. The direct beneficiaries of the intervention are the primary healthcare workers in the facilities ( n  = 150); indirect beneficiaries are their patients ( n  = 100). The TAU condition is existing mental health training and supervision for primary healthcare workers delivered through the Programme for Improving Mental healthcarE (PRIME) implementing the mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP). The primary objective is to evaluate acceptability and feasibility through qualitative interviews with primary healthcare workers, trainers, and mental health service users. The secondary objective is to collect quantitative information on health worker outcomes including mental health stigma (Social Distance Scale), clinical knowledge (mh

Assessing Health Workers Knowledge on the Determinants of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The participants were interviewed with a structured questionnaire used to elicit the knowledge of health workers on health determinants. Results: When individual factors were considered, a greater percentage of health workers, believed that safe drinking water (98.9%), where a person lives (96.6%) and a balanced diet, ...

A job analysis of selected health workers in a district health system in KwaZulu Natal - Part three: Other categories of health workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B Groenewald

2003-09-01

Full Text Available This article described the third part of a study aimed at doing a job analysis of nurses and non-professional health workers in a district health system. This article describes the tasks of five categories of workers, their training and their work-load over an ordinary week.

On the front line of primary health care: the profile of community health workers in rural Quechua communities in Peru

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zumaran Adriana

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Objective To describe the profile of community health workers – health promoters, traditional birth attendants and traditional healers – in rural Quechua communities from Ayacucho, Peru. Methods Basic quantitative and qualitative information was gathered as part of a community health project implemented between 1997 and 2002 in 40 Andean communities with information from questionnaires, personal interviews and group discussions. Results The majority of current community health workers are men with limited education who are primarily Quechua speakers undertaking their work on a voluntary basis. Health promoters are mostly young, male, high school graduates. There exists a high drop-out rate among these workers. In contrast, traditional healers and traditional birth attendants possess an almost diametrically opposite profile in terms of age, education and drop-out rates, though males still predominate. At the community level the health promoters are the most visible community health workers. Conclusion It is very important to consider and to be aware of the profile of community health workers in order to provide appropriate alternatives when working with these groups as well as with the indigenous population, particularly in terms of culture, language and gender issues.

Shift work and burnout among health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Wisetborisut, A; Angkurawaranon, C; Jiraporncharoen, W; Uaphanthasath, R; Wiwatanadate, P

2014-06-01

Burnout, defined as a syndrome derived from prolonged exposure to stressors at work, is often seen in health care workers. Shift work is considered one of the occupational risks for burnout in health care workers. To identify and describe the association between shift work and burnout among health care workers. A cross-sectional study of health care workers in Chiang Mai University Hospital, Thailand. Data were collected via an online self-answered questionnaire and included details of shift work and burnout. Burnout was measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Two thousand seven hundred and seventy two health care workers participated, a 52% response rate. Burnout was found more frequently among shift workers than those who did not work shifts (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.4, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.0-1.9). Among shift workers, over 10 years of being a shift worker was associated with increasing burnout (aOR 1.7, 95% CI: 1.2-2.6) and having 6-8 sleeping hours per day was associated with having less burnout (aOR 0.7, 95% CI: 0.5-0.9). Nurses who had at least 8 days off per month had lower odds of burnout compared with those with fewer than 8 days off (aOR 0.6, 95% CI: 0.5-0.8). Shift work was associated with burnout in this sample. Increased years of work as a shift worker were associated with more frequent burnout. Adequate sleeping hours and days off were found to be possible protective factors. Policies on shift work should take into account the potential of such work for contributing towards increasing burnout. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Daily practices of health among sex workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elouyse Fernandes Leitão

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Objective: To describe the health practices adopted by sex workers in their daily lives. Methods: A qualitative study that took place at bars where sex workers of Maceió –AL, Brazil, work. The universe of participant subjects was integrated by 15 female sex workers, aged between 20 and 39 years, assisted by the team of a Street Clinic. The research took place between August and October 2011 and women were randomly selected. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, which were all audio-recorded and transcribed for further analysis and interpretation. Results: Thematic analysis of the data produced and the theoretical framework of health promotion enabled the categorization of the health practices in daily life of these women, such as: prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, body care and aesthetics, physical activity, nutrition, leisure, interpersonal relationships, consumption of alcohol and others drugs, self-medication, and quest for health services. The ways they appropriate themselves of such practices are conditioned by the social vulnerability and economic and sociocultural context they are in. Conclusion: Despite the deficiencies found in the development of these practices, sex workers seek to preserve habits that improve their physical, social and mental health, as well as the pursuit of professional care and services to promote their health.

On the frontline of eastern Burma's chronic conflict--listening to the voices of local health workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Footer, Katherine H A; Meyer, Sarah; Sherman, Susan G; Rubenstein, Leonard

2014-11-01

Globally, attacks on and interferences with health workers and healthcare delivery, including targeted violence towards providers, attacks on hospitals and delays and denial of health care, represent a serious humanitarian and human rights issue. However, gaps in research about these events persist, limiting the evidence base from which to understand and address the problem. This paper focuses on experiences of local health workers in eastern Burma's chronic conflict, including their strategies for addressing security and ensuring access to vulnerable ethnic communities in the region. Face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted in June and August 2012 with 27 health workers from three health organizations that operate throughout eastern Burma, with their operational head quarters located in Mae Sot, Tak Province, Thailand. Qualitative analysis found that health workers in this setting experience violent and non-violent interferences with their work, and that the Burmese government's military activities in the region have severely impacted access to care, which remains restricted. Data show that innovative security strategies have emerged, including the important role of the community in ensuring securer access to health care. This study underscores health workers' concern for improved data collection to support the rights of health workers to provide health care, and the rights of community members to receive health care in conflict-affected settings. Findings will inform the development of an incident reporting form to improve systematic data collection and documentation of attacks on health in this setting. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Public Health Services for Foreign Workers in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Noh, Normah Awang; Wahab, Haris Abd; Bakar Ah, Siti Hajar Abu; Islam, M Rezaul

2016-01-01

The objective of this study was to know the status of the foreign workers' access to public health services in Malaysia based on their utilization pattern. The utilization pattern covered a number of areas, such as frequency of using health services, status of using health services, choice and types of health institutions, and cost of health treatment. The study was conducted on six government hospitals in the Klang Valley area in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Data were collected from 600 foreign patients working in the country, using an interview method with a structured questionnaire. The results showed that the foreign workers' access to public health services was very low. The findings would be an important guideline to formulate an effective health service policy for the foreign workers in Malaysia.

'Your health our concern, our health whose concern?': perceptions of injustice in organizational relationships and processes and frontline health worker motivation in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Aberese-Ako, Matilda; van Dijk, Han; Gerrits, Trudie; Arhinful, Daniel Kojo; Agyepong, Irene Akua

2014-09-01

Taking a perspective of frontline health workers as internal clients within health systems, this study explored how perceived injustice in policy and organizational matters influence frontline health worker motivation and the consequent effect on workers' attitudes and performance in delivering maternal and neonatal health care in public hospitals. It consisted of an ethnographic study in two public hospitals in Southern Ghana. Participant observation, conversation and in-depth interviews were conducted over a 16-month period. Ethical approval and consent were obtained from relevant persons and authorities. Qualitative analysis software Nvivo 8 was used for coding and analysis of data. Main themes identified in the analysis form the basis for interpreting and reporting study findings. Findings showed that most workers perceived injustice in distributive, procedural and interactional dimensions at various levels in the health system. At the national policy level this included poor conditions of service. At the hospital level, it included perceived inequity in distribution of incentives, lack of protection and respect for workers. These influenced frontline worker motivation negatively and sometimes led to poor response to client needs. However, intrinsically motivated workers overcame these challenges and responded positively to clients' health care needs. It is important to recognize and conceptualize frontline workers in health systems as internal clients of the facilities and organizations within which they work. Their quality needs must be adequately met if they are to be highly motivated and supported to provide quality and responsive care to their clients. Meeting these quality needs of internal clients and creating a sense of fairness in governance arrangements between frontline workers, facilities and health system managers is crucial. Consequently, intervention measures such as creating more open door policies, involving frontline workers in decision making

Dynamics of the mental health workforce: investigating the composition of physicians and other health providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Stefos, Theodore; Burgess, James F; Cohen, Jeffrey P; Lehner, Laura; Moran, Eileen

2012-12-01

We evaluate how changes to mental health workforce levels, composition, and degree of labor substitution, may impact typical practice output. Using a generalized Leontief production function and data from 134 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) mental health practices, we estimate the q-complementarity/q-substitutability of mental health workers. We look at the entire spectrum of mental health services rather than just outpatient or physician office services. We also examine more labor types, including residents, than previous studies. The marginal patient care output contribution is estimated for each labor type as well as the degree to which physicians and other mental health workers may be substitutes or complements. Results indicate that numerous channels exist through which input substitution can improve productivity. Seven of eight labor and capital inputs have positive estimated marginal products. Most factor inputs exhibit diminishing marginal productivity. Of 28 unique labor-capital pairs, 17 are q-complements and 11 are q-substitutes. Complementarity among several labor types provides evidence of a team approach to mental health service provision. Our approach may serve to better inform healthcare providers regarding more productive mental health workforce composition both in and outside of VA.

Violence against health workers in Family Medicine Centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Turki, Nouf; Afify, Ayman Am; AlAteeq, Mohammed

2016-01-01

Health care violence is a significant worldwide problem with negative consequences on both the safety and well-being of health care workers as well as workplace activities. Reports examining health care violence in Saudi Arabia are limited and the results are conflicting. To estimate the prevalence and determine the demographic and occupational characteristics associated with workplace violence in primary care centers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study included 270 health care workers in 12 family medicine centers in Riyadh during November and December 2014. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to estimate the frequency, timing, causes, reactions, and consequences of workplace violence plus participants' demographic and occupational data. A total 123 health care workers (45.6%) experienced some kind of violence over 12 months prior to the study. These included physical (6.5%) and nonphysical violence (99.2%), including verbal violence (94.3%) and intimidation (22.0%). Offenders were patients (71.5%) in the majority of cases, companions (20.3%), or both (3.3%). Almost half (48.0%) of health care workers who experienced violence did nothing, 38.2% actively reported the event, and 13.8% consulted a colleague. A significant association of workplace violence was found with working multiple shifts, evening or night shift, and lack of an encouraging environment to report violence. Workplace violence is still a significant problem in primary care centers. The high frequency of violence together with underreporting may indicate the inefficiency of the current safety program. More safety programs and training activities for health care workers, efficient reporting system, and zero tolerance policies need to be implemented to minimize workplace violence against health workers.

The status of occupational safety among health service providers in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

identify and bring under control at workplaces all health risks; provide ... on the status of occupational safety among hospital workers in Tanzania. ..... The assistance from the IPC/IS. National ... tions of the Healthcare Infection Prevention.

Synthetic social support: Theorizing lay health worker interventions.

Science.gov (United States)

Gale, Nicola K; Kenyon, Sara; MacArthur, Christine; Jolly, Kate; Hope, Lucy

2018-01-01

Levels of social support are strongly associated with health outcomes and inequalities. The use of lay health workers (LHWs) has been suggested by policy makers across the world as an intervention to identify risks to health and to promote health, particularly in disadvantaged communities. However, there have been few attempts to theorize the work undertaken by LHWs to understand how interventions work. In this article, the authors present the concept of 'synthetic socialsupport' and distinguish it from the work of health professionals or the spontaneous social support received from friends and family. The authors provide new empirical data to illustrate the concept based on qualitative, observational research, using a novel shadowing method involving clinical and non-clinical researchers, on the everyday work of 'pregnancy outreach workers' (POWs) in Birmingham, UK. The service was being evaluated as part of a randomized controlled trial. These LHWs provided instrumental, informational, emotional and appraisal support to the women they worked with, which are all key components of social support. The social support was 'synthetic' because it was distinct from the support embedded in spontaneous social networks: it was non-reciprocal; it was offered on a strictly time-limited basis; the LHWs were accountable for the relationship, and the social networks produced were targeted rather than spontaneous. The latter two qualities of this synthetic form of social support may have benefits over spontaneous networks by improving the opportunities for the cultivation of new relationships (both strong and weak ties) outside the women's existing spontaneous networks that can have a positive impact on them and by offering a reliable source of health information and support in a chaotic environment. The concept of SSS can help inform policy makers about how deploying lay workers may enable them to achieve desired outcomes, specify their programme theories and evaluate

Mental Health Insurance Parity and Provider Wages.

Science.gov (United States)

Golberstein, Ezra; Busch, Susan H

2017-06-01

Policymakers frequently mandate that employers or insurers provide insurance benefits deemed to be critical to individuals' well-being. However, in the presence of private market imperfections, mandates that increase demand for a service can lead to price increases for that service, without necessarily affecting the quantity being supplied. We test this idea empirically by looking at mental health parity mandates. This study evaluated whether implementation of parity laws was associated with changes in mental health provider wages. Quasi-experimental analysis of average wages by state and year for six mental health care-related occupations were considered: Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists; Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors; Marriage and Family Therapists; Mental Health Counselors; Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers; and Psychiatrists. Data from 1999-2013 were used to estimate the association between the implementation of state mental health parity laws and the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and average mental health provider wages. Mental health parity laws were associated with a significant increase in mental health care provider wages controlling for changes in mental health provider wages in states not exposed to parity (3.5 percent [95% CI: 0.3%, 6.6%]; pwages. Health insurance benefit expansions may lead to increased prices for health services when the private market that supplies the service is imperfect or constrained. In the context of mental health parity, this work suggests that part of the value of expanding insurance benefits for mental health coverage was captured by providers. Given historically low wage levels of mental health providers, this increase may be a first step in bringing mental health provider wages in line with parallel health professions, potentially reducing turnover rates and improving treatment quality.

Health services reform in Bangladesh: hearing the views of health workers and their professional bodies.

Science.gov (United States)

Cockcroft, Anne; Milne, Deborah; Oelofsen, Marietjie; Karim, Enamul; Andersson, Neil

2011-12-21

In Bangladesh, widespread dissatisfaction with government health services did not improve during the Health and Population Sector Programme (HPSP) reforms from 1998-2003. A 2003 national household survey documented public and health service users' views and experience. Attitudes and behaviour of health workers are central to quality of health services. To investigate whether the views of health workers influenced the reforms, we surveyed local health workers and held evidence-based discussions with local service managers and professional bodies. Some 1866 government health workers in facilities serving the household survey clusters completed a questionnaire about their views, experience, and problems as workers. Field teams discussed the findings from the household and health workers' surveys with local health service managers in five upazilas (administrative sub-districts) and with the Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) and Bangladesh Nurses Association (BNA). Nearly one half of the health workers (45%) reported difficulties fulfilling their duties, especially doctors, women, and younger workers. They cited inadequate supplies and infrastructure, bad behaviour of patients, and administrative problems. Many, especially doctors (74%), considered they were badly treated as employees. Nearly all said lack of medicines in government facilities was due to inadequate supply, not improved during the HPSP. Two thirds of doctors and nurses complained of bad behaviour of patients. A quarter of respondents thought quality of service had improved as a result of the HPSP.Local service managers and the BMA and BNA accepted patients had negative views and experiences, blaming inadequate resources, high patient loads, and patients' unrealistic expectations. They said doctors and nurses were demotivated by poor working conditions, unfair treatment, and lack of career progression; private and unqualified practitioners sought to please patients instead of giving medically

The mother's card: a simplified aid for primary health workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Shah, K P; Shah, P M

1981-02-01

The Mother's Card and its use are described. The card is filled out by the health worker and provides data on the mother concerning family planning, menstrual cycles, pregnancy period (including whether at risk, state of nutrition, immunization against tetanus, and expected date of birth), and breastfeeding. The card is kept by the mother, and the health worker keeps a copy. Each card has space for 10 years and up to 4 pregnancies. The cards have been used successfully in India since 1976 and in Somalia since early 1980, and were useful in strengthening family planning programs as well as identifying pregnancies at risk for special attention.

A work-based learning approach for clinical support workers on mental health inpatient wards.

Science.gov (United States)

Kemp, Philip; Gilding, Moorene; Seewooruttun, Khooseal; Walsh, Hannah

2016-09-14

Background With a rise in the number of unqualified staff providing health and social care, and reports raising concerns about the quality of care provided, there is a need to address the learning needs of clinical support workers. This article describes a qualitative evaluation of a service improvement project that involved a work-based learning approach for clinical support workers on mental health inpatient wards. Aim To investigate and identify insights in relation to the content and process of learning using a work-based learning approach for clinical support workers. Method This was a qualitative evaluation of a service improvement project involving 25 clinical support workers at the seven mental health inpatient units in South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Three clinical skills tutors were appointed to develop, implement and evaluate the work-based learning approach. Four sources of data were used to evaluate this approach, including reflective journals, qualitative responses to questionnaires, three focus groups involving the clinical support workers and a group interview involving the clinical skills tutors. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings The work-based learning approach was highly valued by the clinical support workers and enhanced learning in practice. Face-to-face learning in practice helped the clinical support workers to develop practice skills and reflective learning skills. Insights relating to the role of clinical support workers were also identified, including the benefits of face-to-face supervision in practice, particularly in relation to the interpersonal aspects of care. Conclusion A work-based learning approach has the potential to enhance care delivery by meeting the learning needs of clinical support workers and enabling them to apply learning to practice. Care providers should consider how the work-based learning approach can be used on a systematic, organisation-wide basis in the context of budgetary

Hurricane Season Public Health Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Guidance for Health Care Providers, Response and Recovery Workers, and Affected Communities - CDC, 2017.

Science.gov (United States)

2017-09-22

CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) have guidance and technical materials available in both English and Spanish to help communities prepare for hurricanes and floods (Table 1). To help protect the health and safety of the public, responders, and clean-up workers during response and recovery operations from hurricanes and floods, CDC and ATSDR have developed public health guidance and other resources; many are available in both English and Spanish (Table 2).

Coping and compromise: a qualitative study of how primary health care providers respond to health reform in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Mingji; Wang, Wei; Millar, Ross; Li, Guohong; Yan, Fei

2017-08-04

Health reform in China since 2009 has emphasized basic public health services to enhance the function of Community Health Services as a primary health care facility. A variety of studies have documented these efforts, and the challenges these have faced, yet up to now the experience of primary health care (PHC) providers in terms of how they have coped with these changes remains underdeveloped. Despite the abundant literature on psychological coping processes and mechanisms, the application of coping research within the context of human resources for health remains yet to be explored. This research aims to understand how PHC providers coped with the new primary health care model and the job characteristics brought about by these changes. Semi-structured interviews with primary health care workers were conducted in Jinan city of Shandong province in China. A maximum variation sampling method selected 30 PHC providers from different specialties. Thematic analysis was used drawing on a synthesis of theories related to the Job Demands-Resources model, work adjustment, and the model of exit, voice, loyalty and neglect to understand PHC providers' coping strategies. Our interviews identified that the new model of primary health care significantly affected the nature of primary health work and triggered a range of PHC providers' coping processes. The results found that health workers perceived their job as less intensive than hospital medical work but often more trivial, characterized by heavy workload, blurred job description, unsatisfactory income, and a lack of professional development. However, close relationship with community and low work pressure were satisfactory. PHC providers' processing of job demands and resources displayed two ways of interaction: aggravation and alleviation. Processing of job demands and resources led to three coping strategies: exit, passive loyalty, and compromise with new roles and functions. Primary health care providers employed coping

Health services reform in Bangladesh: hearing the views of health workers and their professional bodies

OpenAIRE

Cockcroft, Anne; Milne, Deborah; Oelofsen, Marietjie; Karim, Enamul; Andersson, Neil

2011-01-01

Abstract Background In Bangladesh, widespread dissatisfaction with government health services did not improve during the Health and Population Sector Programme (HPSP) reforms from 1998-2003. A 2003 national household survey documented public and health service users' views and experience. Attitudes and behaviour of health workers are central to quality of health services. To investigate whether the views of health workers influenced the reforms, we surveyed local health workers and held evide...

Integrating Community Health Workers (CHWs) into Health Care Organizations.

Science.gov (United States)

Payne, Julianne; Razi, Sima; Emery, Kyle; Quattrone, Westleigh; Tardif-Douglin, Miriam

2017-10-01

Health care organizations increasingly employ community health workers (CHWs) to help address growing provider shortages, improve patient outcomes, and increase access to culturally sensitive care among traditionally inaccessible or disenfranchised patient populations. Scholarly interest in CHWs has grown in recent decades, but researchers tend to focus on how CHWs affect patient outcomes rather than whether and how CHWs fit into the existing health care workforce. This paper focuses on the factors that facilitate and impede the integration of the CHWs into health care organizations, and strategies that organizations and their staff develop to overcome barriers to CHW integration. We use qualitative evaluation data from 13 awardees that received Health Care Innovation Awards from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to enhance the quality of health care, improve health outcomes, and reduce the cost of care using programs involving CHWs. We find that organizational capacity, support for CHWs, clarity about health care roles, and clinical workflow drive CHW integration. We conclude with practical recommendations for health care organizations interested in employing CHWs.

A 21st century approach to assessing the protection of workers' health.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosskam, Ellen

2011-01-01

This article presents a rights-based approach to the way occupational health and safety is understood, departing from medical, engineering, and technocratic approaches that dominated the field throughout the 20th century. Moving toward a 21st century concept of the good society - based on citizenship rights and principles of universalism - a social protection-based system of assessing governments' performance in protecting workers' health and well-being is proffered. A Work Security Index (WSI) is used as a benchmarking system for evaluating national or local level governments' performance in this domain. Data from 95 countries in all regions of the world were used. A pioneering tool the WSI grouped and ranked countries based on governments' protection of workers' health and safety. Data represent findings from 95 national governments, as well as workers and employers. Among 95 countries, most have much work to do to provide the minimum measures to protect their working populations. Results reveal that women workers face particular social and economic insecurities and inequalities. We attempt to inform a broad audience about the WSI, how it can be used at multiple levels in any country for the protection of workers' health, safety, and well-being, and the need to do so.

Preventive actions taken by workers after workers' health surveillance: a controlled trial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boschman, J. S.; van der Molen, H. F.; Frings-Dresen, M. H. W.; Sluiter, J. K.

2013-01-01

To evaluate construction workers' preventive actions and occupational physician's (OPs) recommendations after a job-specific workers' health surveillance (WHS) compared with the currently used generic WHS. After the WHS, the OPs' written recommendations were captured. At the 3-month follow-up, the

Process Evaluation of a Workers' Health Surveillance Program for Meat Processing Workers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Holland, Berry J; Brouwer, Sandra; de Boer, Michiel R; Reneman, Michiel F; Soer, Remko

2017-01-01

Objective To evaluate the implementation process of a workers' health surveillance (WHS) program in a Dutch meat processing company. Methods Workers from five plants were eligible to participate in the WHS program. The program consisted of four evaluative components and an intervention component.

Process Evaluation of a Workers' Health Surveillance Program for Meat Processing Workers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Holland, Berry; Brouwer, Sandra; de Boer, Michiel R; Reneman, Michiel F; Soer, Remko

Objective To evaluate the implementation process of a workers' health surveillance (WHS) program in a Dutch meat processing company. Methods Workers from five plants were eligible to participate in the WHS program. The program consisted of four evaluative components and an intervention component.

Exploring causes and consequences of sex workers' psychological health: Implications for health care policy. A study conducted in Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Picos, Andrés Palacios; González, Ruth Pinedo; de la Iglesia Gutiérrez, Myriam

2018-03-22

The aim of the researchers is to explore the causes and consequences of the psychological health of sex workers as well as provide an intervention model for the prevention of mental disorders in accordance with World Health Organization (WHO) levels. The study sample consisted of 146 sex workers from Spain. Loneliness and maltreatment have a negative influence on psychological health, while self-esteem has a protector role over psychological health. Psychological health has a positive impact on perceived quality of life and other health domains. On the contrary, psychological health has a negative impact on drug use and symptoms of anxiety. Data are discussed.

Efficacy of an education course delivered to community health workers in diabetes control: A randomized clinical trial.

Science.gov (United States)

de Souza, Camila Furtado; Dalzochio, Mériane Boeira; Zucatti, Alessandra Teixeira Netto; De Nale, Rosana; de Almeida, Marília Tavares; Gross, Jorge Luiz; Leitão, Cristiane Bauermann

2017-08-01

Community health workers are community members who provide education and care for patients for a broad range of health issues, including diabetes mellitus. However, few community health workers are trained for diabetes education and little is known about the effectiveness of their interventions. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of a diabetes education program delivered to community health workers in improving the metabolic control of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Eight community health workers, providing care for 118 patients, were randomized in two groups to receive a 1-month diabetes education program (intervention, patients n = 62) or an education course in other health issues (control, patients n = 56). Each community health worker was responsible for transmitting the acquired knowledge to patients. Primary outcome was changed in HbA1C 3 months after the intervention. PARTICIPANTS: Mean age was 61 ± 11 years, 35% were men and 62% were whites. HbA1c levels reduced in both groups (intervention: 9.1 ± 2.2 vs. 7.9 ± 1.9%; control: 9.1 ± 2.1 vs. 8.4 ± 2.5%, p patients' follow-up, but it was similar in intervention and control groups. The diabetes mellitus education course delivered to community health workers was able to improve patients' lipid profile.

Female non-regular workers in Japan: their current status and health.

Science.gov (United States)

Inoue, Mariko; Nishikitani, Mariko; Tsurugano, Shinobu

2016-12-07

The participation of women in the Japanese labor force is characterized by its M-shaped curve, which reflects decreased employment rates during child-rearing years. Although, this M-shaped curve is now improving, the majority of women in employment are likely to fall into the category of non-regular workers. Based on a review of the previous Japanese studies of the health of non-regular workers, we found that non-regular female workers experienced greater psychological distress, poorer self-rated health, a higher smoking rate, and less access to preventive medicine than regular workers did. However, despite the large number of non-regular workers, there are limited researches regarding their health. In contrast, several studies in Japan concluded that regular workers also had worse health conditions due to the additional responsibility and longer work hours associated with the job, housekeeping, and child rearing. The health of non-regular workers might be threatened by the effects of precarious employment status, lower income, a lower safety net, outdated social norm regarding non-regular workers, and difficulty in achieving a work-life balance. A sector wide social approach to consider life course aspect is needed to protect the health and well-being of female workers' health; promotion of an occupational health program alone is insufficient.

Occupational health and safety services for immigrant workers in Japanese workplaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Uchino, Asuka; Muto, Takashi; Muto, Shigeki

2010-01-01

The objective of this study was to clarify the status of occupational health and safety services for immigrant workers, the barriers to employing immigrant workers and the needs of the managers in workplaces to keep immigrant workers healthy and safe. This study was a cross-sectional survey. We sent self-administered questionnaires to 126 workplaces in the western part of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan in August 2006. The questionnaire included the characteristics of the workplace, barriers to employing immigrant workers, current actions to keep immigrant workers healthy and safe, the implementation rate of health checkups and important issues to keep immigrant workers healthy and safe. Implementation rates of health and safety education, creating job instruction manuals written in their native languages, creating safety signs written in their native languages, and the use of translators were 62.5%, 50.0%, 41.1% and 37.5%, respectively. Implementation rates of general health checkups, special health checkups and follow up after health checkups were 80.8%, 73.6% and 67.3%, respectively. The most important issue which the managers considered kept immigrant workers healthy and safe was health checkups (69.6%). In conclusion, several occupational health and safety services were conducted for immigrant workers without a margin to compare with Japanese workers.

Work environment and health among Swedish livestock workers

OpenAIRE

Kolstrup, Christina

2008-01-01

During the last decades, Swedish livestock farming has undergone considerable structural changes and technical development, which have influenced the work environment and health of the workers in several ways. The general aim of the studies was to investigate the work environment and health among Swedish livestock workers on large modern dairy and pig farms. The studies were mainly based on questionnaires. The results showed that the livestock workers reported high frequencies of musculoskele...

Oral health knowledge of health care workers in special?children?s center

OpenAIRE

Wyne, Amjad; Hammad, Nouf; Splieth, Christian

2015-01-01

Objective: To determine the oral health knowledge of health care workers in special children?s center. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect following information: demographics, oral hygiene practices, importance of fluoride, dental visits, cause of tooth decay, gingival health, and sources of oral health information. The study was conducted at Riyadh Center for Special Children in Riyadh City from December 2013 to May 2014. Results: All 60 health care workers in the ...

Health and social care workers: don't risk flu infection

OpenAIRE

Public Health Agency

2015-01-01

This leaflet explains why health and social care workers should receive the new flu vaccine. It provides a range of information, including how to get vaccinated, how the vaccine works, how effective it is and possible side effects.

Violence against health workers in Family Medicine Centers

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Turki, Nouf; Afify, Ayman AM; AlAteeq, Mohammed

2016-01-01

Background Health care violence is a significant worldwide problem with negative consequences on both the safety and well-being of health care workers as well as workplace activities. Reports examining health care violence in Saudi Arabia are limited and the results are conflicting. Objective To estimate the prevalence and determine the demographic and occupational characteristics associated with workplace violence in primary care centers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods A cross-sectional study included 270 health care workers in 12 family medicine centers in Riyadh during November and December 2014. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to estimate the frequency, timing, causes, reactions, and consequences of workplace violence plus participants’ demographic and occupational data. Results A total 123 health care workers (45.6%) experienced some kind of violence over 12 months prior to the study. These included physical (6.5%) and nonphysical violence (99.2%), including verbal violence (94.3%) and intimidation (22.0%). Offenders were patients (71.5%) in the majority of cases, companions (20.3%), or both (3.3%). Almost half (48.0%) of health care workers who experienced violence did nothing, 38.2% actively reported the event, and 13.8% consulted a colleague. A significant association of workplace violence was found with working multiple shifts, evening or night shift, and lack of an encouraging environment to report violence. Conclusion Workplace violence is still a significant problem in primary care centers. The high frequency of violence together with underreporting may indicate the inefficiency of the current safety program. More safety programs and training activities for health care workers, efficient reporting system, and zero tolerance policies need to be implemented to minimize workplace violence against health workers. PMID:27330300

Associated factors for recommending HBV vaccination to children among Georgian health care workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Butsashvili Maia

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Most cases of hepatitis B virus (HBV infection and subsequent liver diseases can be prevented with universal newborn HBV vaccination. The attitudes of health care workers about HBV vaccination and their willingness to recommend vaccine have been shown to impact HBV vaccination coverage and the prevention of vertical transmission of HBV. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the factors associated with health care worker recommendations regarding newborn HBV vaccination. Methods A cross-sectional study of prevalence and awareness of hepatitis B and hepatitis B vaccine was conducted among randomly selected physicians and nurses employed in seven hospitals in Georgia in 2006 and 2007. Self-administered questionnaires included a module on recommendations for HBV, HCV and HIV. Results Of the 1328 participants included in this analysis, 36% reported recommending against hepatitis B vaccination for children, including 33% of paediatricians. Among the 70.6% who provided a reason for not recommending HBV vaccine, the most common concern was an adverse vaccine event. Unvaccinated physicians and nurses were more likely to recommend against HBV vaccine (40.4% vs 11.4%, PR 3.54; 95% CI: 2.38, 5.29. Additionally, health care worker age was inversely correlated with recommendations for HBV vaccine with older workers less likely to recommend it. Conclusion Vaccinating health care workers against HBV may provide a dual benefit by boosting occupational safety as well as strengthening universal coverage programs for newborns.

Important exposure controls for protection against antineoplastic agents: Highlights for oncology health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Alehashem, Maryam; Baniasadi, Shadi

2018-01-01

A great number of antineoplastic drugs (ANPDs) are used globally in cancer treatment. Due to their adverse health effects, occupational exposure to ANPDs is considered a potential health risk to health care workers. The current study aimed to evaluate safe-handling practices of ANPDs, exposure controls, and adverse health implications for health care providers exposed to ANDPs. Prevention measures, including engineering, administrative, and work practice controls, as well as personal protective equipment (PPE), were recorded daily through a questionnaire for six weeks. Acute adverse health effects experienced by health care workers were also documented. The implemented exposure controls for preparation, administration, cleaning, and waste disposal were not in accordance with the safe handling guidelines. Central nervous system disorders (26.33%) were the most frequent acute adverse effects reported by health care workers. A significant correlation was found between the number of experienced adverse effects and handling characteristics, including the number of preparations (r = 0.38, p health care workers were in danger of exposure to ANPDs and experienced acute adverse health effects. Implementation of appropriate exposure controls is required to prevent occupational exposure to ANPDs.

Workers' health surveillance: implementation of the Directive 89/391/EEC in Europe

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Colosio, C.; Mandic-Rajcevic, S.; Godderis, L.; van der Laan, G.; Hulshof, C.; van Dijk, F.

2017-01-01

Background European Union (EU) Directive 89/391 addressed occupational health surveillance, which recommends to provide workers with `access to health surveillance at regular intervals', aiming to prevent work-related and occupational diseases. Aims To investigate how EU countries adopted this

Evaluation of Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Health Care Workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meltem Yalcinkaya

2007-12-01

Full Text Available This research was conducted as a descriptive study for the purpose of determining the healthy lifestyle behaviors of health care workers employed at university and state hospitals in Afyon and Denizli. There were 1779 health care personnel in the sample who were employed at university and state hospitals in Afyon and Denizli. It was planned conducted the research on the entire population however some health care workers did not want to participate a total of 316 health care workers were included in the study sample. Data were collected between 15 June-15 Agust 2006 using a demografik questionnaire form and the Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors Scale. In the evaluation data gained, Number-percentage calculations, t-test, One Way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used. This study was determined that 84.5% of the health care workers were nurses, 55.7% were in the 20-30 year old age group, 75.0% were married, 39.2% worked on surgical units, 69.6% ate regular meals, only 22.8% were interested in sports, 61.1% did not smoke cigarettes. A statistically significant difference was found health care workers between for age group, gender, educational level, years of employment, hospital unit where they worked, status of eating regular meals, status of being interested in sports, use of alcohol, hospital where employed and the health care workers' healthy lifestyle behaviors (p<0.05. For development health care behaviors lifestyle the main factor which is avoid risk behavior life. Healt care workers must play an important role on the issue. [TAF Prev Med Bull 2007; 6(6.000: 409-420

Evaluation of Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Health Care Workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meltem Yalcinkaya

2007-12-01

Full Text Available This research was conducted as a descriptive study for the purpose of determining the healthy lifestyle behaviors of health care workers employed at university and state hospitals in Afyon and Denizli. There were 1779 health care personnel in the sample who were employed at university and state hospitals in Afyon and Denizli. It was planned conducted the research on the entire population however some health care workers did not want to participate a total of 316 health care workers were included in the study sample. Data were collected between 15 June-15 Agust 2006 using a demografik questionnaire form and the Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors Scale. In the evaluation data gained, Number-percentage calculations, t-test, One Way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used. This study was determined that 84.5% of the health care workers were nurses, 55.7% were in the 20-30 year old age group, 75.0% were married, 39.2% worked on surgical units, 69.6% ate regular meals, only 22.8% were interested in sports, 61.1% did not smoke cigarettes. A statistically significant difference was found health care workers between for age group, gender, educational level, years of employment, hospital unit where they worked, status of eating regular meals, status of being interested in sports, use of alcohol, hospital where employed and the health care workers' healthy lifestyle behaviors (p<0.05. For development health care behaviors lifestyle the main factor which is avoid risk behavior life. Healt care workers must play an important role on the issue. [TAF Prev Med Bull. 2007; 6(6: 409-420

Improving Diabetes Care and Health Measures among Hispanics Using Community Health Workers: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Babamoto, Kenneth S.; Sey, Kwa A.; Camilleri, Angela J.; Karlan, Vicki J.; Catalasan, Joana; Morisky, Donald E.

2009-01-01

The increasing prevalence of diabetes and obesity, growing health disparities, and shortage of bilingual and culturally trained health care professionals underscore the role of trained community health workers (CHWs) to provide economically sustainable and culturally relevant services. This prospective randomized design evaluated the relative…

Nutra-ergonomics: influence of nutrition on physical employment standards and the health of workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Shearer, Jane; Graham, Terry E; Skinner, Tina L

2016-06-01

The importance of ergonomics across several scientific domains, including biomechanics, psychology, sociology, and physiology, have been extensively explored. However, the role of other factors that may influence the health and productivity of workers, such as nutrition, is generally overlooked. Nutra-ergonomics describes the interface between workers, their work environment, and performance in relation to their nutritional status. It considers nutrition to be an integral part of a safe and productive workplace that encompasses physical and mental health as well as the long-term wellbeing of workers. This review explores the knowledge, awareness, and common practices of nutrition, hydration, stimulants, and fortified product use employed prior to physical employment standards testing and within the workplace. The influence of these nutra-ergonomic strategies on physical employment standards, worker safety, and performance will be examined. Further, the roles, responsibilities, and implications for the applicant, worker, and the employer will be discussed within the context of nutra-ergonomics, with reference to the provision and sustainability of an environment conducive to optimize worker health and wellbeing. Beyond physical employment standards, workplace productivity, and performance, the influence of extended or chronic desynchronization (irregular or shift work) in the work schedule on metabolism and long-term health, including risk of developing chronic and complex diseases, is discussed. Finally, practical nutra-ergonomic strategies and recommendations for the applicant, worker, and employer alike will be provided to enhance the short- and long-term safety, performance, health, and wellbeing of workers.

Purchasing power of civil servant health workers in Mozambique ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Health workers' purchasing power is an important consideration in the development of strategies for health workforce development. This work explores the purchasing power variation of Mozambican public sector health workers, between 1999 and 2007. In general, the calculated purchasing power increased ...

[Legislation and inspection for the health and safety of workers. Efficacy and limits].

Science.gov (United States)

Tozzi, G A

2009-01-01

To provide information regarding Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Inspections in Europe. The dynamics that are transforming regulatory subsystems and complementary inspection services are described. Simplification initiatives, the limits and difficulties of applying the different models of Health and Safety Management Systems are discussed. Examples are given on how to evaluate legislation and technical standards during planning and enforcement. Different approaches for studying characteristics, methodologies and efficacy in practice of OHS Inspection are provided. Targeted inspections need to respond to the needs of enterprises and workers. Impartiality must be guaranteed and workers' participation should be facilitated.

Health services reform in Bangladesh: hearing the views of health workers and their professional bodies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cockcroft Anne

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In Bangladesh, widespread dissatisfaction with government health services did not improve during the Health and Population Sector Programme (HPSP reforms from 1998-2003. A 2003 national household survey documented public and health service users' views and experience. Attitudes and behaviour of health workers are central to quality of health services. To investigate whether the views of health workers influenced the reforms, we surveyed local health workers and held evidence-based discussions with local service managers and professional bodies. Methods Some 1866 government health workers in facilities serving the household survey clusters completed a questionnaire about their views, experience, and problems as workers. Field teams discussed the findings from the household and health workers' surveys with local health service managers in five upazilas (administrative sub-districts and with the Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA and Bangladesh Nurses Association (BNA. Results Nearly one half of the health workers (45% reported difficulties fulfilling their duties, especially doctors, women, and younger workers. They cited inadequate supplies and infrastructure, bad behaviour of patients, and administrative problems. Many, especially doctors (74%, considered they were badly treated as employees. Nearly all said lack of medicines in government facilities was due to inadequate supply, not improved during the HPSP. Two thirds of doctors and nurses complained of bad behaviour of patients. A quarter of respondents thought quality of service had improved as a result of the HPSP. Local service managers and the BMA and BNA accepted patients had negative views and experiences, blaming inadequate resources, high patient loads, and patients' unrealistic expectations. They said doctors and nurses were demotivated by poor working conditions, unfair treatment, and lack of career progression; private and unqualified practitioners sought to

‘Your health our concern, our health whose concern?’: perceptions of injustice in organizational relationships and processes and frontline health worker motivation in Ghana

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van Dijk, Han; Gerrits, Trudie; Arhinful, Daniel Kojo; Agyepong, Irene Akua

2014-01-01

Taking a perspective of frontline health workers as internal clients within health systems, this study explored how perceived injustice in policy and organizational matters influence frontline health worker motivation and the consequent effect on workers’ attitudes and performance in delivering maternal and neonatal health care in public hospitals. It consisted of an ethnographic study in two public hospitals in Southern Ghana. Participant observation, conversation and in-depth interviews were conducted over a 16-month period. Ethical approval and consent were obtained from relevant persons and authorities. Qualitative analysis software Nvivo 8 was used for coding and analysis of data. Main themes identified in the analysis form the basis for interpreting and reporting study findings. Findings showed that most workers perceived injustice in distributive, procedural and interactional dimensions at various levels in the health system. At the national policy level this included poor conditions of service. At the hospital level, it included perceived inequity in distribution of incentives, lack of protection and respect for workers. These influenced frontline worker motivation negatively and sometimes led to poor response to client needs. However, intrinsically motivated workers overcame these challenges and responded positively to clients’ health care needs. It is important to recognize and conceptualize frontline workers in health systems as internal clients of the facilities and organizations within which they work. Their quality needs must be adequately met if they are to be highly motivated and supported to provide quality and responsive care to their clients. Meeting these quality needs of internal clients and creating a sense of fairness in governance arrangements between frontline workers, facilities and health system managers is crucial. Consequently, intervention measures such as creating more open door policies, involving frontline workers in decision

Workers' health surveillance: implementation of the Directive 89/391/EEC in Europe.

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Colosio, C; Mandic-Rajcevic, S; Godderis, L; van der Laan, G; Hulshof, C; van Dijk, F

2017-10-01

European Union (EU) Directive 89/391 addressed occupational health surveillance, which recommends to provide workers with 'access to health surveillance at regular intervals', aiming to prevent work-related and occupational diseases. To investigate how EU countries adopted this Directive. We invited one selected representative per member state to complete a questionnaire. All 28 EU countries implemented the Directive in some form. Workers' health surveillance (WHS) is available to all workers in 15 countries, while in 12, only specific subgroups have access. In 21 countries, workers' participation is mandatory, and in 22, the employer covers the cost. In 13 countries, access to WHS is not available to all workers but depends on exposure to specific risk factors, size of the enterprise or belonging to vulnerable groups. In 26 countries, the employer appoints and revokes the physician in charge of WHS. Twelve countries have no recent figures, reports or cost-benefit analyses of their WHS programmes. In 15 countries where reports exist, they are often in the native language. Coverage and quality of occupational health surveillance should be evaluated to facilitate learning from good practice and from scientific studies. We propose a serious debate in the EU with the aim of protecting workers more effectively, including the use of evidence-based WHS programmes. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

The Mental Vitality @ Work study: design of a randomized controlled trial on the effect of a workers' health surveillance mental module for nurses and allied health professionals

OpenAIRE

Gärtner, Fania R; Ketelaar, Sarah M; Smeets, Odile; Bolier, Linda; Fischer, Eva; van Dijk, Frank JH; Nieuwenhuijsen, Karen; Sluiter, Judith K

2011-01-01

Abstract Background Employees in health care service are at high risk for developing mental health complaints. The effects of mental health complaints on work can have serious consequences for the quality of care provided by these workers. To help health service workers remain healthy and productive, preventive actions are necessary. A Workers' Health Surveillance (WHS) mental module may be an effective strategy to monitor and promote good (mental) health and work performance. The objective o...

Occupational health and safety among commercial sex workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Michael W; Crisp, Beth R; Månsson, Sven-Axel; Hawkes, Sarah

2012-03-01

The concept of occupational health and safety (OHS) for commercial sex workers has rarely been investigated, perhaps because of the often informal nature of the workplace, the associated stigma, and the frequently illegal nature of the activity. We reviewed the literature on health, occupational risks, and safety among commercial sex workers. Cultural and local variations and commonalities were identified. Dimensions of OHS that emerged included legal and policing risks, risks associated with particular business settings such as streets and brothels, violence from clients, mental health risks and protective factors, alcohol and drug use, repetitive strain injuries, sexually transmissible infections, risks associated with particular classes of clients, issues associated with male and transgender commercial sex workers, and issues of risk reduction that in many cases are associated with lack of agency or control, stigma, and legal barriers. We further discuss the impact and potential of OHS interventions for commercial sex workers. The OHS of commercial sex workers covers a range of domains, some potentially modifiable by OHS programs and workplace safety interventions targeted at this population. We argue that commercial sex work should be considered as an occupation overdue for interventions to reduce workplace risks and enhance worker safety.

Health and safety aspects of textile workers from Solapur (India textile industries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rahul B Hiremath

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Textile sector in India plays an important role in the country's economy, providing employment to a significant population in rural and urban areas. Objectives: This paper focuses on health and safety aspects of textile workers in Solapur City (one of the key textile cluster in the state of Maharashtra, India. Methodology: A sample of 180 workers from the identified textile industries of Solapur city were assessed for their general physique, muscle tone, lung condition, and eyesight using different techniques. The study aimed at developing a framework for understanding risks to textile workers resulting from lack of health and safety standards in companies. Results: Findings showed that most of the workers have been affected by respiratory problems, increase in muscle tone, eye problems and musculoskeletal problem. It has been also observed that job security or regular work impacts positively to the worker’s long term body health. However, there is an immediate need to adopt and implement measures in accordance with Indian Factories Act (OHSAS 18001/ILO-OSH 2001 which includes directions and procedures in respect of industrial installations, work environment and occupational health and safety guidelines.

Left alone--Swedish nurses' and mental health workers' experiences of being care providers in a social psychiatric dwelling context in the post-health-care-restructuring era. A focus-group interview study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kristiansen, Lisbeth; Hellzén, Ove; Asplund, Kenneth

2010-09-01

The professional role of nurses and mental health workers in social psychiatry is being re-defined towards a recovery, client-focused perspective. Approximately 0.7 percent of the adult population in Sweden suffers from severe mental illness leading to a need for community services. The primary aims of the Mental Health Reform in 1995 in Sweden were to improve the quality of life for people with severe, long-term mental illness and, through normalization and integration, enhancing their opportunities to communicate with and participate in society. This study examines nurses' and mental health workers' views and experiences of being care providers in a municipal psychiatric group dwelling context when caring for clients suffering from severe mental illness. Three focus group interviews were made and thematic content analysis was conducted. Four themes were formulated: 'Being a general human factotum not unlike the role of parents', 'Having a complex and ambiguous view of clients', 'Working in a mainly 'strangled' situation', and 'Feeling overwhelming frustration'. The staff, for instance, experienced a heavy workload that highly involved themselves as persons and restricted organization. The individual relational aspects of the nursing role, the risk of instrumentalizing the staff due to an organizational economical teleopathy (meaning a pathological desire to react goals), and the high societal demands on accomplishing the Mental Health Reform goals are discussed. To redefine the professional role of nurses and mental health workers in the community, in Sweden known as municipality, they need support in the form of continuously education, supervision, and dialogue with politicians as well as the public in general. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 Nordic College of Caring Science.

Health workers' use of electronic information concerning children ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Information regarding young children who experience barriers to the development of listening, language and learning is limited in the South African context. Health workers, in particular those ... These health workers also have access to and are active users of computers and the Internet. They may therefore benefit from ...

Female non-regular workers in Japan: their current status and health

Science.gov (United States)

INOUE, Mariko; NISHIKITANI, Mariko; TSURUGANO, Shinobu

2016-01-01

The participation of women in the Japanese labor force is characterized by its M-shaped curve, which reflects decreased employment rates during child-rearing years. Although, this M-shaped curve is now improving, the majority of women in employment are likely to fall into the category of non-regular workers. Based on a review of the previous Japanese studies of the health of non-regular workers, we found that non-regular female workers experienced greater psychological distress, poorer self-rated health, a higher smoking rate, and less access to preventive medicine than regular workers did. However, despite the large number of non-regular workers, there are limited researches regarding their health. In contrast, several studies in Japan concluded that regular workers also had worse health conditions due to the additional responsibility and longer work hours associated with the job, housekeeping, and child rearing. The health of non-regular workers might be threatened by the effects of precarious employment status, lower income, a lower safety net, outdated social norm regarding non-regular workers, and difficulty in achieving a work-life balance. A sector wide social approach to consider life course aspect is needed to protect the health and well-being of female workers’ health; promotion of an occupational health program alone is insufficient. PMID:27818453

Worker health is good for the economy: union density and psychosocial safety climate as determinants of country differences in worker health and productivity in 31 European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Dollard, Maureen F; Neser, Daniel Y

2013-09-01

Work stress is recognized globally as a social determinant of worker health. Therefore we explored whether work stress related factors explained national differences in health and productivity (gross domestic product (GDP)). We proposed a national worker health productivity model whereby macro market power factors (i.e. union density), influence national worker health and GDP via work psychosocial factors and income inequality. We combined five different data sets canvasing 31 wealthy European countries. Aggregated worker self-reported health accounted for 13 per cent of the variance in national life expectancy and in national gross domestic product (GDP). The most important factors explaining worker self-reported health and GDP between nations were two levels of labor protection, macro-level (union density), and organizational-level (psychosocial safety climate, PSC, i.e. the extent of management concern for worker psychological health). The majority of countries with the highest levels of union density and PSC (i.e., workplace protections) were Social Democratic in nature (i.e., Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway). Results support a type of society explanation that social and economic factors (e.g., welfare regimes, work related policies) in concert with political power agents at a national level explain in part national differences in workplace protection (PSC) that are important for worker health and productivity. Attention should be given across all countries, to national policies to improve worker health, by bolstering national and local democratic processes and representation to address and implement policies for psychosocial risk factors for work stress, bullying and violence. Results suggest worker health is good for the economy, and should be considered in national health and productivity accounting. Eroding unionism may not be good for worker health or the economy either. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

'And when a certain health issue happen, they try to cover it': Stakeholder perspectives on the health of temporary foreign workers and their families.

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Salami, Bukola; Hegadoren, Kathleen; Kirova, Anna; Meherali, Salima; Nsaliwa, Christina; Chiu, Yvonne

2018-01-01

This study examines stakeholders' perspectives on the health and well-being of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) and their families in Alberta, Canada. We used a critically informed qualitative methodology. We interviewed 13 stakeholders, including service providers and policy makers. Stakeholders involved in providing services to TFWs perceived that the workers experience (1) barriers in accessing mental health services, (2) mental health challenges, (3) family health challenges, (4) occupational health challenges, and (5) income and social status as a social determinant of health. Immigration and class status intersect to influence the health of this vulnerable population in Canada.

Health check on radiation workers in the nuclear energy industry using Todai Health Index

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuchiya, Takehiko; Norimura, Toshiyuki; Kumashiro, Masaharu; Sudo, Seiji; Hashimoto, Tetsuaki.

1986-01-01

In the nuclear energy industry, the plants are located far from urban areas and the working environments are generally separate from each other for radiation protection purposes. The health investigation on radiation workers in the nuclear energy industry was carried out using the Todai Health Index questionnaire in 1982, 1983 and 1984. As a control study non-radiation workers on the other several working fields were investigated in the same manner. The results showed that the status of radiation workers in the nuclear energy industry is similar to that of the workers in the other working fields and the THI questionnaire is useful to know health and working status of a group of workers. (author)

Medical tourism's impacts on health worker migration in the Caribbean: five examples and their implications for global justice.

Science.gov (United States)

Snyder, Jeremy; Crooks, Valorie A; Johnston, Rory; Adams, Krystyna; Whitmore, Rebecca

2015-01-01

Medical tourism is a practice where individuals cross international borders in order to access medical care. This practice can impact the global distribution of health workers by potentially reducing the emigration of health workers from destination countries for medical tourists and affecting the internal distribution of these workers. Little has been said, however, about the impacts of medical tourism on the immigration of health workers to medical tourism destinations. We discuss five patterns of medical tourism-driven health worker migration to medical tourism destinations: 1) long-term international migration; 2) long-term diasporic migration; 3) long-term migration and 'black sheep'; 4) short-term migration via time share; and 5) short-term migration via patient-provider dyad. These patterns of health worker migration have repercussions for global justice that include potential negative impacts on the following: 1) health worker training; 2) health worker distributions; 3) local provision of care; and 4) local economies. In order to address these potential negative impacts, policy makers in destination countries should work to ensure that changes in health worker training and licensure aimed at promoting the medical tourism sector are also supportive of the health needs of the domestic population. Policy makers in both source and destination countries should be aware of the effects of medical tourism on health worker flows both into and out of medical tourism destinations and work to ensure that the potential harms of these worker flows to both groups are mitigated.

Medical tourism's impacts on health worker migration in the Caribbean: five examples and their implications for global justice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeremy Snyder

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Medical tourism is a practice where individuals cross international borders in order to access medical care. This practice can impact the global distribution of health workers by potentially reducing the emigration of health workers from destination countries for medical tourists and affecting the internal distribution of these workers. Little has been said, however, about the impacts of medical tourism on the immigration of health workers to medical tourism destinations. We discuss five patterns of medical tourism-driven health worker migration to medical tourism destinations: 1 long-term international migration; 2 long-term diasporic migration; 3 long-term migration and ‘black sheep’; 4 short-term migration via time share; and 5 short-term migration via patient-provider dyad. These patterns of health worker migration have repercussions for global justice that include potential negative impacts on the following: 1 health worker training; 2 health worker distributions; 3 local provision of care; and 4 local economies. In order to address these potential negative impacts, policy makers in destination countries should work to ensure that changes in health worker training and licensure aimed at promoting the medical tourism sector are also supportive of the health needs of the domestic population. Policy makers in both source and destination countries should be aware of the effects of medical tourism on health worker flows both into and out of medical tourism destinations and work to ensure that the potential harms of these worker flows to both groups are mitigated.

Medical tourism's impacts on health worker migration in the Caribbean: five examples and their implications for global justice

Science.gov (United States)

Snyder, Jeremy; Crooks, Valorie A.; Johnston, Rory; Adams, Krystyna; Whitmore, Rebecca

2015-01-01

Medical tourism is a practice where individuals cross international borders in order to access medical care. This practice can impact the global distribution of health workers by potentially reducing the emigration of health workers from destination countries for medical tourists and affecting the internal distribution of these workers. Little has been said, however, about the impacts of medical tourism on the immigration of health workers to medical tourism destinations. We discuss five patterns of medical tourism-driven health worker migration to medical tourism destinations: 1) long-term international migration; 2) long-term diasporic migration; 3) long-term migration and ‘black sheep’; 4) short-term migration via time share; and 5) short-term migration via patient-provider dyad. These patterns of health worker migration have repercussions for global justice that include potential negative impacts on the following: 1) health worker training; 2) health worker distributions; 3) local provision of care; and 4) local economies. In order to address these potential negative impacts, policy makers in destination countries should work to ensure that changes in health worker training and licensure aimed at promoting the medical tourism sector are also supportive of the health needs of the domestic population. Policy makers in both source and destination countries should be aware of the effects of medical tourism on health worker flows both into and out of medical tourism destinations and work to ensure that the potential harms of these worker flows to both groups are mitigated. PMID:25865122

Building teams in primary care: what do nonlicensed allied health workers want?

Science.gov (United States)

Saba, George W; Taché, Stephanie; Ward, Lisa; Chen, Ellen H; Hammer, Hali

2011-01-01

Nonlicensed allied health workers are becoming increasingly important in collaborative team care, yet we know little about their experiences while filling these roles. To explore their perceptions of working as health coaches in a chronic-disease collaborative team, the teamlet model, we conducted a qualitative study to understand the nature and dynamics of this emerging role. During semistructured interviews, 11 health coaches reflected on their yearlong experience in the teamlet model at an urban underserved primary care clinic. Investigators conducted a thematic analysis of transcriptions of the interviews using a grounded theory process. Four themes emerged: 1) health-coach roles and responsibilities included acting as a patient liaison between visits, providing patient education and cultural brokering during medical visits, and helping patients navigate the health care system; 2) communication and relationships in the teamlet model of care were defined by a triad of the patient, health coach, and resident physician; 3) interest in the teamlet model was influenced by allied health workers' prior education and health care roles; and 4) factors influencing the effectiveness of the model were related to clinical and administrative time pressures and competing demands of other work responsibilities. Nonlicensed allied health workers participating in collaborative teams have an important role in liaising between patients and their primary care physicians, advocating for patients through cultural brokering, and helping patients navigate the health care system. To maximize their job satisfaction, their selection should involve strong consideration of motivation to participate in these expanded roles, and protected time must be provided for them to carry out their responsibilities and optimize their effectiveness.

Health Workers' Knowledge of Preventing Mother-To-Child ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Health Workers' Knowledge of Preventing Mother-To-Child Transmission of HIV in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. ... The proportion of health workers with poor, fair, and good knowledge of the national guidelines on PMTCT was 8.5%, 30.4% and 61.1% respectively. Knowledge of the national guidelines was significantly ...

Microeconomic institutions and personnel economics for health care delivery: a formal exploration of what matters to health workers in Rwanda.

Science.gov (United States)

Serneels, Pieter; Lievens, Tomas

2018-01-26

Most developing countries face important challenges regarding the quality of health care, and there is a growing consensus that health workers play a key role in this process. Our understanding as to what are the key institutional challenges in human resources, and their underlying driving forces, is more limited. A conceptual framework that structures existing insights and provides concrete directions for policymaking is also missing. To gain a bottom-up perspective, we gather qualitative data through semi-structured interviews with different levels of health workers and users of health services in rural and urban Rwanda. We conducted discussions with 48 health workers and 25 users of health services in nine different groups in 2005. We maximized within-group heterogeneity by selecting participants using specific criteria that affect health worker performance and career choice. The discussion were analysed electronically, to identify key themes and insights, and are documented with a descriptive quantitative analysis relating to the associations between quotations. The findings from this research are then revisited 10 years later making use of detailed follow-up studies that have been carried out since then. The original discussions identified both key challenges in human resources for health and driving forces of these challenges, as well as possible solutions. Two sets of issues were highlighted: those related to the size and distribution of the workforce and those related to health workers' on-the-job performance. Among the latter, four categories were identified: health workers' poor attitudes towards patients, absenteeism, corruption and embezzlement and lack of medical skills among some categories of health workers. The discussion suggest that four components constitute the deeper causal factors, which are, ranked in order of ease of malleability, incentives, monitoring arrangements, professional and workplace norms and intrinsic motivation. Three

[Investigation and Analysis on shift work female workers' and the impact on reproductive health].

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, C Y; Yu, W L; Xu, M; Xing, Z L

2018-02-20

Objective: To investigate the distribution of shift work of female workers in different industries and the relationship between shift work and reproductive health, then provide reference for the female workers' labor protection. Methods: From June to September 2016, cluster sampling questionnaire survey was performed among female workers from 11 industries including electronics, medicine and health, pharmacy. To investigate the general information, shift - work information, reproductive health and childbearing history of these female workers. Results: A total of 63 711 usable questionnaires were collected, resulting in a response rate of 96.94%.A total of 13 546 workers worked in shifts, accounting for 21.26%, the highest proportion was in the medical industry 30.61%, metallurgy 30.81%, petrochemical engineerin 26.78% respectively. Compared with the workers who did not work in shifts, those who worked in shifts had significantly higher rate of abnormal menstruation, rate of reproductive system infection in married workers, the rate of infertility (χ(2)=19.108、10.673、21.510, P <0.05) ; Compared with the workers who did not work in nightshifts, those who worked in nightshifts had significantly higher rate of abnormal menstruation, rate of reproductive system infection among married workers and rate of infertility (χ(2)=140.043、71.901、29.024, P <0.01) . Conclusion: The highest rate of shift work was in the medical industry, metallurgy, petrochemical engineering industry. Workers who worked in shifts have serious reproductive health issues, the occurrence of abnormal menstruation, reproductive system infection and infertility may associated with shift work.

Stereotypes on Nodding syndrome: responses of health workers in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To identify stereotypes and negative attitudes held by primary care health workers about nodding syndrome. Method: Of one hundred health workers invited by the Uganda Ministry of Health for training on nodding syndrome from the three most affected districts of Pader, Lamwo and Kitgum forty were interviewed ...

Prevalence of depression among health workers in Enugu, South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Aims: Determination of the prevalence and distribution of depression among health workers at tertiary level of health care delivery in Enugu South East Nigeria. Settings and Design: A cross‑sectional descriptive survey of depression in health workers at tertiary level. Subjects and Methods: By proportional quota sampling, ...

Motivating health workers up to a limit: partial effects of performance-based financing on working environments in Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatnagar, Aarushi; George, Asha S

2016-09-01

In 2012, the Nigerian government launched performance-based financing (PBF) in three districts providing financial incentives to health workers based on the quantity and quality of service provision. They were given autonomy to use funds for operational costs and performance bonuses. This study aims to understand changes in perceived motivation among health workers with the introduction of PBF in Wamba district, Nigeria. The study used a qualitative research design to compare perceptions of health workers in facilities receiving PBF payments in the pilot district of Wamba to those that were not. In-depth semi-structured interviews (n = 39) were conducted with health workers from PBF and non-PBF facilities along with managers of the PBF project. Framework analysis was used to identify patterns and variations in responses. Facility records were collated and triangulated with qualitative data. Health workers receiving PBF payments reported to be 'awakened' by performance bonuses and improved working environments including routine supportive supervision and availability of essential drugs. They recounted being more punctual, hard working and proud of providing better services to their communities. In comparison, health workers in non-PBF facilities complained about the dearth of basic equipment and lack of motivating strategies. However, health workers from both sets of facilities considered there to be a severe shortage of manpower resulting in excessive workload, fatigue and general dissatisfaction. PBF strategies can succeed in motivating health workers by bringing about a change in incentives and working conditions. However, such programmes need to be aligned with human resource reforms including timely recruitment and appropriate distribution of health workers to prevent burn out and attrition. As people working on the frontline of constrained health systems, health workers are responsive to improved incentives and working conditions, but need more

Stigma-related mental health knowledge and attitudes among primary health workers and community health volunteers in rural Kenya

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mutiso, Victoria N.; Musyimi, Christine W.; Nayak, Sameera S.; Musau, Abednego M.; Rebello, Tahilia; Nandoya, Erick; Tele, Albert K.; Pike, Kathleen; Ndetei, David M.

2017-01-01

Background: The study was conducted in rural Kenya and assessed stigma in health workers from primary health facilities. Aims: This study compared variations in stigma-related mental health knowledge and attitudes between primary health workers (HWs) and community health volunteers (CHVs). Methods:

Preliminary Investigation of Workplace-Provided Compressed Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction with Pediatric Medical Social Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Trowbridge, Kelly; Mische Lawson, Lisa; Andrews, Stephanie; Pecora, Jodi; Boyd, Sabra

2017-11-01

Mindfulness practices, including mindfulness meditation, show promise for decreasing stress among health care providers. This exploratory study investigates the feasibility of a two-day compressed mindfulness-based stress reduction (cMBSR) course provided in the hospital workplace with pediatric health care social workers. The standard course of Jon Kabat-Zinn's MBSR requires a participant commitment to eight weeks of instruction consisting of one 2.5-hour-per-week class, a single day retreat, and 45 minutes of practice for six of seven days each week. Commitments to family, work, caregiving, education, and so on, as well as limitations such as distance, may prevent health care providers from participating in a standard MBSR course. Using t tests, researchers measured the effect of cMBSR on (a) positive and negative experiences in pediatric social work, (b) perceived stress, (c) mindfulness, and (d) caring self-efficacy (as a component of patient- and family-centered care). Results included significant differences between the pre- and post-intervention outcome variables on the Professional Quality of Life Secondary Traumatic Stress subscale, the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale, and the Caring Efficacy Scale. Findings found adequate evidence for the feasibility of cMBSR design and for a need of a more rigorous study of the effects of the cMBSR intervention. © 2017 National Association of Social Workers.

Improving occupational health care for construction workers: a process evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Boschman, Julitta S; van der Molen, Henk F; Sluiter, Judith K; Frings-Dresen, Monique H W

2013-03-11

To evaluate the process of a job-specific workers' health surveillance (WHS) in improving occupational health care for construction workers. From January to July 2012 were 899 bricklayers and supervisors invited for the job-specific WHS at three locations of one occupational health service throughout the Netherlands. The intervention aimed at detecting signs of work-related health problems, reduced work capacity and/or reduced work functioning. Measurements were obtained using a recruitment record and questionnaires at baseline and follow-up. The process evaluation included the following: reach (attendance rate), intervention dose delivered (provision of written recommendations and follow-up appointments), intervention dose received (intention to follow-up on advice directly after WHS and remembrance of advice three months later), and fidelity (protocol adherence). The workers scored their increase in knowledge from 0-10 with regard to health status and work ability, their satisfaction with the intervention and the perceived (future) effect of such an intervention. Program implementation was defined as the mean score of reach, fidelity, and intervention dose delivered and received. Reach was 9% (77 workers participated), fidelity was 67%, the intervention dose delivered was 92 and 63%, and the intervention dose received was 68 and 49%. The total programme implementation was 58%. The increases in knowledge regarding the health status and work ability of the workers after the WHS were graded as 7.0 and 5.9, respectively. The satisfaction of the workers with the entire intervention was graded as 7.5. The perceived (future) effects on health status were graded as 6.3, and the effects on work ability were graded with a 5.2. The economic recession affected the workers as well as the occupational health service that enacted the implementation. Programme implementation was acceptable. Low reach, limited protocol adherence and modest engagement of the workers with respect

Quality of care of treatment for uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition provided by lady health workers in Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers, Eleanor; Ali, Muhammad; Fazal, Shahid; Kumar, Deepak; Guerrero, Saul; Hussain, Imtiaz; Soofi, Sajid; Alvarez Morán, Jose Luis

2018-02-01

To assess the quality of care provided by lady health workers (LHW) managing cases of uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in the community. Cross-sectional quality-of-care study. The feasibility of the implementation of screening and treatment for uncomplicated SAM in the community by LHW was tested in Sindh Province, Pakistan. An observational, clinical prospective multicentre cohort study compared the LHW-delivered care with the existing outpatient health facility model. LHW implementing treatment for uncomplicated SAM in the community. Oedema was diagnosed conducted correctly for 87·5 % of children; weight and mid upper-arm circumference were measured correctly for 60·0 % and 57·4 % of children, respectively. The appetite test was conducted correctly for 42·0 % of cases. Of all cases of SAM without complications assessed during the study, 68·0 % received the correct medical and nutrition treatment. The proportion of cases that received the correct medical and nutrition treatment and key counselling messages was 4·0 %. This quality-of-care study supports existing evidence that LHW are able to identify uncomplicated SAM, and a majority can provide appropriate nutrition and medical treatment in the community. However, the findings also show that their ability to provide the complete package with an acceptable level of care is not assured. Additional evidence on the impact of supervision and training on the quality of SAM treatment and counselling provided by LHW to children with SAM is required. The study has also shown that, as in other sectors, it is essential that operational challenges are addressed in a timely manner and that implementers receive appropriate levels of support, if SAM is to be treated successfully in the community.

Occupational hazards to health of port workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yukun; Zhan, Shuifen; Liu, Yan; Li, Yan

2017-12-01

The aim of this article is to reduce the risk of occupational hazards and improve safety conditions by enhancing hazard knowledge and identification as well as improving safety behavior for freight port enterprises. In the article, occupational hazards to health and their prevention measures of freight port enterprises have been summarized through a lot of occupational health evaluation work, experience and understanding. Workers of freight port enterprises confront an equally wide variety of chemical, physical and psychological hazards in production technology, production environment and the course of labor. Such health hazards have been identified, the risks evaluated, the dangers to health notified and effective prevention measures which should be put in place to ensure the health of the port workers summarized. There is still a long way to go for the freight port enterprises to prevent and control the occupational hazards. Except for occupational hazards and their prevention measures, other factors that influence the health of port workers should also be paid attention to, such as age, work history, gender, contraindication and even the occurrence and development rules of occupational hazards in current production conditions.

Performance of community health workers : situating their intermediary position within complex adaptive health systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kok, Maryse C; Broerse, Jacqueline E W; Theobald, Sally; Ormel, Hermen; Dieleman, Marjolein; Taegtmeyer, Miriam

2017-01-01

Health systems are social institutions, in which health worker performance is shaped by transactional processes between different actors.This analytical assessment unravels the complex web of factors that influence the performance of community health workers (CHWs) in low- and middle-income

Contribution of community health workers to surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases in the Obala health district

Science.gov (United States)

Vouking, Marius Zambou; Binde, Thierry; Tadenfok, Carine Nouboudem; Ekani, Jean Marie Edengue; Ekra, Daniel

2017-01-01

Introduction The establishment of effective community-based surveillance is an essential objective of all disease surveillance systems. Several studies and reports have found that the situation is far from optimal in several developing countries such as Cameroon. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study to assess the contribution of community health workers to surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases in Obala health district. The performance of community health workers was measured using: the number of cases referred to the health center, the percentage of accomplished referrals, the percentage of cases referred by community health workers confirmed by the staff of health centers. A questionnaire containing forty-seven questions (open-ended and closed-ended) was used for interviews with community health workers. The data were analyzed using SPSS 21 and Excel 2007. Counts and percentages are reported. Results The study showed that the age ranged of community health workers was from 24 to 61 years with an average of 37.9 years ± 6.7 years. The most represented age group was between 40 and 50 with a percentage of 38.6%. The male sex was more represented than the female sex (61.4% vs 38.6%) or a sex ratio male man of 1.7. Forty-five percent of community health workers were selected at a village meeting, 93.1% of community health workers were involved in the surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases and 87% experienced at least one preventable disease. Only 45.8% of them had the case definitions of the four diseases. Analysis of community health workers attendance at organized health committee meetings showed that 79% of community health workers attended at least one health committee meeting in 2015 and only 49% were monitored in 2015. Community health workers reported 42 suspected cases of measles, 37 of which actually went to the nearest Health Center, a baseline rate of 88%. Conclusion Community health workers play a key role in the control of

Field tests of a participatory ergonomics toolkit for Total Worker Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Nobrega, Suzanne; Kernan, Laura; Plaku-Alakbarova, Bora; Robertson, Michelle; Warren, Nicholas; Henning, Robert

2017-04-01

Growing interest in Total Worker Health ® (TWH) programs to advance worker safety, health and well-being motivated development of a toolkit to guide their implementation. Iterative design of a program toolkit occurred in which participatory ergonomics (PE) served as the primary basis to plan integrated TWH interventions in four diverse organizations. The toolkit provided start-up guides for committee formation and training, and a structured PE process for generating integrated TWH interventions. Process data from program facilitators and participants throughout program implementation were used for iterative toolkit design. Program success depended on organizational commitment to regular design team meetings with a trained facilitator, the availability of subject matter experts on ergonomics and health to support the design process, and retraining whenever committee turnover occurred. A two committee structure (employee Design Team, management Steering Committee) provided advantages over a single, multilevel committee structure, and enhanced the planning, communication, and teamwork skills of participants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Field tests of a participatory ergonomics toolkit for Total Worker Health

Science.gov (United States)

Kernan, Laura; Plaku-Alakbarova, Bora; Robertson, Michelle; Warren, Nicholas; Henning, Robert

2018-01-01

Growing interest in Total Worker Health® (TWH) programs to advance worker safety, health and well-being motivated development of a toolkit to guide their implementation. Iterative design of a program toolkit occurred in which participatory ergonomics (PE) served as the primary basis to plan integrated TWH interventions in four diverse organizations. The toolkit provided start-up guides for committee formation and training, and a structured PE process for generating integrated TWH interventions. Process data from program facilitators and participants throughout program implementation were used for iterative toolkit design. Program success depended on organizational commitment to regular design team meetings with a trained facilitator, the availability of subject matter experts on ergonomics and health to support the design process, and retraining whenever committee turnover occurred. A two committee structure (employee Design Team, management Steering Committee) provided advantages over a single, multilevel committee structure, and enhanced the planning, communication, and team-work skills of participants. PMID:28166897

Lay health worker experiences administering a multi-level combination intervention to improve PMTCT retention.

Science.gov (United States)

DiCarlo, Abby; Fayorsey, Ruby; Syengo, Masila; Chege, Duncan; Sirengo, Martin; Reidy, William; Otieno, Juliana; Omoto, Jackton; Hawken, Mark P; Abrams, Elaine J

2018-01-10

health workers played a fundamental role in supporting mothers engaged in PMTCT services and provided valuable feedback on the implementation of PMTCT interventions. Future interventions must include strategies to ensure client privacy, decrease stigma within communities, and address the practical limitations of health systems. This study adds important insight to the growing body of research on lay health worker experiences in HIV and PMTCT care. Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01962220 .

[History of the health protection of construction workers].

Science.gov (United States)

Riva, M A; Cesana, G; Mosconi, G

2012-01-01

Construction has been one of the first sectors in which an organized system of occupational health protection has been implemented, as shown by the Egyptian physicians caring for workers and artisans in building sites. During the Middle Ages, first examples of accident prevention legislation in this field may be found among the Lombards. In the same period, craft organizations led to greater social recognition of skilled workers, without a improvement in their health conditions. Ramazzini accurately described some risks of stonemasons and brick-makers (chemical and microclimatic hazards). In the following centuries, the Industrial Revolution led to a population growth in metropolitan areas and increased employment as well as accidents in the construction sector, as demonstrated by some ex-voto paintings in churches. This phenomenon became more evident in postwar recovery, forcing Italy to adopt modern accident prevention rules. Nowadays Italian legislation, complying with EU directive, provides new challenges for occupational physician.

Health social workers sources of knowledge for decision making in practice.

Science.gov (United States)

McDermott, Fiona; Henderson, Annabel; Quayle, Carol

2017-10-01

This article presents findings from research examining knowledge social workers in a health network in Victoria, Australia identified as informing their decision-making. Data for 13 patients, and in-depth interviews with six social workers who worked with these patients, were studied. A thematic analysis of interviews revealed that participants identified reliance on past experience and contextual/situational information as underpinning their decisions, demonstrating their commitment to person-in-environment perspectives. However, despite the availability of a repository of empirical evidence, no respondent made use of this. This study provided insight into health practitioners' sources of knowledge, highlighting gaps and areas for further exploration.

Vaccines for preventing hepatitis B in health-care workers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, Weikeng; Gluud, C

2005-01-01

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes acute and chronic liver diseases. Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for health-care workers.......Hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes acute and chronic liver diseases. Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for health-care workers....

"Once the government employs you, it forgets you": Health workers' and managers' perspectives on factors influencing working conditions for provision of maternal health care services in a rural district of Tanzania.

Science.gov (United States)

Mkoka, Dickson Ally; Mahiti, Gladys Reuben; Kiwara, Angwara; Mwangu, Mughwira; Goicolea, Isabel; Hurtig, Anna-Karin

2015-09-14

In many developing countries, health workforce crisis is one of the predominant challenges affecting the health care systems' function of providing quality services, including maternal care. The challenge is related to how these countries establish conducive working conditions that attract and retain health workers into the health care sector and enable them to perform effectively and efficiently to improve health services particularly in rural settings. This study explored the perspectives of health workers and managers on factors influencing working conditions for providing maternal health care services in rural Tanzania. The researchers took a broad approach to understand the status of the current working conditions through a governance lens and brought into context the role of government and its decentralized organs in handling health workers in order to improve their performance and retention. In-depth interviews were conducted with 22 informants (15 health workers, 5 members of Council Health Management Team and 2 informants from the District Executive Director's office). An interview guide was used with questions pertaining to informants' perspective on provision of maternal health care service, working environment, living conditions, handling of staff's financial claims, avenue for sharing concerns, opportunities for training and career progression. Probing questions on how these issues affect the health workers' role of providing maternal health care were employed. Document reviews and observations of health facilities were conducted to supplement the data. The interviews were analysed using a qualitative content analysis approach. Overall, health workers felt abandoned and lost within an unsupportive system they serve. Difficult working and living environments that affect health workers' role of providing maternal health care services were dominant concerns raised from interviews with both health workers and managers. Existence of a bureaucratic and

The Mental Vitality @ Work study: design of a randomized controlled trial on the effect of a workers' health surveillance mental module for nurses and allied health professionals

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gärtner, F.R.; Ketelaar, S.M.; Smeets, O.; Bolier, L.; Fischer, E.; van Dijk, F.J.H.; Nieuwenhuijsen, K.; Sluiter, J.K.

2011-01-01

Employees in health care service are at high risk for developing mental health complaints. The effects of mental health complaints on work can have serious consequences for the quality of care provided by these workers. To help health service workers remain healthy and productive, preventive actions

Immigrant workers in the United States: recent trends, vulnerable populations, and challenges for occupational health.

Science.gov (United States)

McCauley, Linda A

2005-07-01

Immigrant workers are a rapidly growing segment of the U.S. work force, and these increasing numbers have resulted in a different ethnic mix in the work force than in previous decades. Immigrant workers are not a homogenous group, but are over-represented in low-paying occupations. Their diversity and vulnerability present distinct challenges for occupational health nurses. High-risk occupations in which a large proportion of immigrant workers are hired include agriculture, sweatshops, day laborers, and construction. Initiatives needed to improve the working conditions of this vulnerable population include improved surveillance and research, culturally competent care providers, improved health care access, advocacy, and changes in immigration and health policy.

Behavioral lifestyle and mental health status of Japanese factory workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Ezoe, S; Morimoto, K

1994-01-01

Lifestyle factors, sometimes associated with physical health and mortality, have also been known to be associated with mental health status. This study seeks to correlate behavioral lifestyles with major components of mental health among Japanese factory workers. We administered the 28-item version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) and a questionnaire concerning eight personal health practices to 2,132 male and 668 female factory workers at a camera-manufacturing company in Japan. There were strong negative relationships of a higher total number of favorable lifestyles as indicated by the Health Practice Index (HPI) to psychological distress and its components: somatic symptoms, anxiety-insomnia, and social dysfunction. After controlling for the effects of confounding factors that included age, marital status, and somatic condition, multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that five of the eight health factors among male workers--mental stress, nutritional balance, eating breakfast regularly, physical exercise, and working hours--were significantly related to the grade of psychological distress or its three components. Among female workers, five health practices, i.e., mental stress, physical exercise, sleeping hours, working hours, and cigarette smoking, were significantly associated with the grade of psychological distress or its three components. Good health practices might be individually and as a whole associated with better mental health status in factory workers.

Perceived Barriers to Adherence to Tuberculosis Infection Control Measures among Health Care Workers in the Dominican Republic.

Science.gov (United States)

Chapman, Helena J; Veras-Estévez, Bienvenido A; Pomeranz, Jamie L; Pérez-Then, Eddy N; Marcelino, Belkys; Lauzardo, Michael

2017-01-01

INTRODUCTION Health care workers have an increased risk of infection due to occupational Mycobacterium tuberculosis exposure, including multidrug-resistant strains. Health care workers' risk of developing tuberculosis is greater than that of the general population, whether in low-, intermediate- or high-incidence countries. Adherence to infection control measures (administrative controls, environmental controls, and personal respiratory protection) is essential to reduce risk of disease transmission between suspected tuberculosis patients and health care workers, but for different reasons, both objective and subjective, adherence is low. Identifying the causes of low adherence is a prerequisite to effective programming to reduce risk. OBJECTIVE Identify perceived barriers to adherence to tuberculosis infection control measures among health care workers in the Dominican Republic. METHODS During August 2014, a qualitative study was conducted in two tertiary-level hospitals in different regions of the Dominican Republic. A semi-structured interview guide of nine questions was developed, based on the scientific literature and with consensus of clinical experts. Nine semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of seven physicians (five men, two women) and two baccalaureate nurses (both women) working in the emergency medicine, internal medicine or nursing departments of those institutions. Question topics included clinical experience of M. tuberculosis infection and disease; knowledge of disease transmission and preventive practices; clinical management strategies; and perceptions of effectiveness of directly observed treatment, short-course, and disease coping strategies. RESULTS Perceived barriers were described as: 1) sense of invincibility of health care workers; 2) personal beliefs of health care workers related to direct patient communication; 3) low provider-to-patient ratios in hospitals; 4) absence of tuberculosis isolation units for

Ethical Issues in Integrated Health Care: Implications for Social Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Reamer, Frederic G

2018-05-01

Integrated health care has come of age. What began modestly in the 1930s has evolved into a mature model of health care that is quickly becoming the standard of care. Social workers are now employed in a wide range of comprehensive integrated health care organizations. Some of these settings were designed as integrated health care delivery systems from their beginning. Others evolved over time, some incorporating behavioral health into existing primary care centers and others incorporating primary care into existing behavioral health agencies. In all of these contexts, social workers are encountering complex, sometimes unprecedented, ethical challenges. This article identifies and discusses ethical issues facing social workers in integrated health care settings, especially related to informed consent, privacy, confidentiality, boundaries, dual relationships, and conflicts of interest. The author includes practical resources that social workers can use to develop state-of-the-art ethics policies and protocols.

Mental health workers. Graduation daze.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Carol

2003-09-11

PCTs are likely to miss the national target on employment of graduate mental health workers. Pilots are showing success in reducing referrals. Managers must address career progression problems and define roles more clearly.

Job satisfaction: rural versus urban primary health care workers' perception in Ogun State of Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, P C; Ebuehi, O M

2011-01-01

Job satisfaction implies doing a job one enjoys, doing it well, and being suitably rewarded for one' efforts. Several factors affect job satisfaction. To compare factors influencing job satisfaction amongst rural and urban primary health care workers in southwestern Nigeria. A cross sectional comparative study recruited qualified health workers selected by multi stage sampling technique from rural and urban health facilities in four local government areas (LGAs) of Ogun State in Southwestern Nigeria. Data were collected and analysed using Epi info V 3.5.1 RESULTS: The response rates were 88(88%) and 91(91%) respectively in the rural and urban areas. While urban workers derived satisfaction from availability of career development opportunities, materials and equipment, in their current job, rural workers derived satisfaction from community recognition of their work and improved staff relationship. Major de-motivating factors common to both groups were lack of supportive supervision, client-provider relationship and lack of in-service training. However more rural 74(84.1%) than urban 62(68.1%) health workers would prefer to continue working in their present health facilities (p=0.04). There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in job satisfaction with respect to tools availability and career development opportunities (pfactors influencing job satisfaction between rural and urban healthcare workers. There is need for human resource policy to be responsive to the diverse needs of health workers particularly at the primary level.

Living through conflict and post-conflict: experiences of health workers in northern Uganda and lessons for people-centred health systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Namakula, Justine; Witter, Sophie

2014-09-01

Providing people-centred health systems--or any systems at all--requires specific measures to protect and retain healthcare workers during and after the conflict. This is particularly important when health staff are themselves the target of violence and abduction, as is often the case. This article presents the perspective of health workers who lived through conflict in four districts of northern Uganda--Pader, Gulu, Amuru, and Kitgum. These contained more than 90% of the people displaced by the decades of conflict, which ended in 2006. The article is based on 26 in-depth interviews, using a life history approach. This participatory tool encouraged participants to record key events and decisions in their lives, and to explore areas such as their decision to become a health worker, their employment history, and their experiences of conflict and coping strategies. These were analyzed thematically to develop an understanding of how to protect and retain staff in these challenging contexts. During the conflict, many health workers lost their lives or witnessed the death of their friends and colleagues. They also experienced abduction, ambush and injury. Other challenges included disconnection from social and professional support systems, displacement, limited supplies and equipment, increased workload and long working days and lack of pay. Health workers were not passive in the face of these challenges, however. They adopted a range of safety measures, such as mingling with community members, sleeping in the bush, and frequent change of sleeping place, in addition to psychological and practical coping strategies. Understanding their motivation and their views provides an important insight how to maintain staffing and so to continue to offer essential health care during difficult times and in marginalized areas. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine © The Author 2014; all rights reserved.

The comparison of health status between male and female medical radiation workers in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Hui; Liu, Guochao; Tian, Youjia; Zhang, Fengmei; Feng, Zhihui; Chen, Qianshu; Qu, Jianying; Lim, David

2017-01-01

To assess the health statue of chronically exposed Chinese medical radiation workers. A cross-sectional study of 530 medical radiation workers in a city of China was conducted to document the health status and the monitored annually absorbed doses. Long-term and low-dose radiation exposure can affect a number of health indicators in the individuals, which covered the cardiovascular system, hematologic system, ophthalmology, liver and kidney s functions, chromosome aberration and micronucleus. The differences in the health status between male and female individuals were associated with job types and exposed years of service. The monitored doses of individuals were lower than the limit value of the national standard. The health status in chronically exposed individuals demonstrated some gender difference associated with length of exposure and work type. This study provides some evidence to understand the health status of medical radiation workers in China and have the potentially to inform screening and clinical diagnosis. (authors)

Purchasing power of civil servant health workers in Mozambique.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrinho, Fátima; Amaral, Marta; Russo, Giuliano; Ferrinho, Paulo

2012-01-01

Health workers' purchasing power is an important consideration in the development of strategies for health workforce development. This work explores the purchasing power variation of Mozambican public sector health workers, between 1999 and 2007. In general, the calculated purchasing power increased for most careers under study, and the highest percentage increase was observed for the lowest remuneration careers, contributing in this way for a relative reduction in the difference between the higher and the lower salaries. This was done through a simple and easy-to-apply methodology to estimate salaries' capitalization rate, by means of the accumulated inflation rate, after taking wage revisions into account. All the career categories in the Ministry of Health and affiliated public sector institutions were considered. Health workers' purchasing power is an important consideration in the development of strategies for health workforce development. This work explores the purchasing power variation of Mozambican public sector health workers, between 1999 and 2007. In general, the calculated purchasing power increased for most careers under study, and the highest percentage increase was observed for the lowest remuneration careers, contributing in this way for a relative reduction in the difference between the higher and the lower salaries. These results seem to contradict a commonly held assumption that health sector pay has deteriorated over the years, and with substantial damage for the poorest. Further studies appear to be needed to design a more accurate methodology to better understand the evolution and impact of public sector health workers' remunerations across the years.

Privatizing community animal health worker based veterinary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Privatizing community animal health worker based veterinary services delivery system in West Kordofan, Southern Sudan; The needed roles of community animal health assistant (CAHA) and Pastoral unions.

Strengthening practical wisdom: mental health workers' learning and development.

Science.gov (United States)

Eriksen, Kristin Ådnøy; Dahl, Hellen; Karlsson, Bengt; Arman, Maria

2014-09-01

Practical wisdom, understood as knowing how to be or act in any present situation with clients, is believed to be an essential part of the knowledge needed to be a professional mental health worker. Exploring processes of adapting, extending knowledge and refining tacit knowledge grounded in mental health workers' experiences with being in practice may bring awareness of how mental health workers reflect, learn and practice professional 'artistry'. The aim of the article was to explore mental health workers' processes of development and learning as they appeared in focus groups intended to develop practical wisdom. The main research question was 'How might the processes of development and learning contribute to developing practical wisdom in the individual as well as in the practice culture?' The design was multi-stage focus groups, and the same participants met four times. A phenomenological hermeneutical method for researching lived experience guided the analysis. Eight experienced mental health workers representing four Norwegian municipalities participated. The research context was community-based mental health services. The study was reported to Norwegian Social Data Services, and procedures for informed consent were followed. Two examples of processes of re-evaluation of experience (Association, Integration, Validation, Appropriation and Outcomes and action) were explored. The health workers had developed knowledge in previous encounters with clients. In sharing practice experiences, this knowledge was expressed and developed, and also tested and validated against the aims of practice. Discussions led to adapted and extended knowledge, and as tacit knowledge was expressed it could be used actively. Learning to reflect, being ready to be provoked and learning to endure indecisiveness may be foundational in developing practical wisdom. Openness is demanding, and changing habits of mind is difficult. Reflection on, and confrontation with, set practices are

48 CFR 923.7002 - Worker safety and health.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Information and Protection of Worker Safety and Health” or “952.223-77, Conditional Payment of Fee or Profit—Protection of Worker Safety and Health” implement the requirements of section 234C of the Atomic Energy Act... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Worker safety and health...

Worksite Health Promotion for Low-Wage Workers: A Scoping Literature Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Stiehl, Emily; Shivaprakash, Namrata; Thatcher, Esther; Ornelas, India J; Kneipp, Shawn; Baron, Sherry L; Muramatsu, Naoko

2018-02-01

To determine: (1) What research has been done on health promotion interventions for low-wage workers and (2) what factors are associated with effective low-wage workers' health promotion programs. This review includes articles from PubMed and PsychINFO published in or before July 2016. Study Inclusion/Exclusion Criteria: The search yielded 130 unique articles, 35 met the inclusion criteria: (1) being conducted in the United States, (2) including an intervention or empirical data around health promotion among adult low-wage workers, and (3) measuring changes in low-wage worker health. Central features of the selected studies were extracted, including the theoretical foundation; study design; health promotion intervention content and delivery format; intervention-targeted outcomes; sample characteristics; and work, occupational, and industry characteristics. Consistent with a scoping review, we used a descriptive, content analysis approach to analyze extracted data. All authors agreed upon emergent themes and 2 authors independently coded data extracted from each article. The results suggest that the research on low-wage workers' health promotion is limited, but increasing, and that low-wage workers have limited access to and utilization of worksite health promotion programs. Workplace health promotion programs could have a positive effect on low-wage workers, but more work is needed to understand how to expand access, what drives participation, and which delivery mechanisms are most effective.

Identifying Factors for Worker Motivation in Zambia's Rural Health Facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Cross, Samuel S; Baernholdt, Dr Marianne

2017-01-01

Within Zambia there is a shortage of health workers in rural areas. This study aims to identify motivating factors for retaining rural health workers. Sixty rural health workers completed surveys and 46 were interviewed. They rated the importance of six motivating factors and discussed these and other factors in interviews. An interview was conducted with a Government Human Resources Manager (HR Manager) to elicit contextual information. All six factors were identified as being very important motivators, as were two additional factors. Additional career training was identified by many as the most important factor. Comparison of results and the HR Manager interview revealed that workers lacked knowledge about opportunities and that the HR manager was aware of barriers to career development. The Zambian government might better motivate and retain rural health workers by offering them any combination of identified factors, and by addressing the barriers to career development.

Implicit attitudes, emotions, and helping intentions of mental health workers toward their clients.

Science.gov (United States)

Brener, Loren; Rose, Grenville; von Hippel, Courtney; Wilson, Hannah

2013-06-01

The attitudes of mental health care workers toward their clients may influence the quality of care they provide. There is growing recognition of the role of implicit attitudes in behavior toward people with stigmatized illnesses, such as mental illness, and of the need to measure these separately from explicit attitudes. Seventy-four mental health workers completed implicit and explicit measure of attitudes toward people with mental illness. The participants were also asked about their intention to help people with mental illness and their emotional reactions toward people with a mental illness. The findings show that the implicit attitudes of the health workers toward clients with a mental illness are somewhat negative despite the fact that their explicit attitudes are somewhat positive. Although both implicit and explicit attitudes predicted negative emotions, only implicit attitudes were related to helping intentions. This study highlights the association between implicit attitudes and behavioral intentions and confirms the importance of addressing implicit attitudes in mental health research.

Self-reported reasons for hand hygiene in 3 groups of health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

McLaughlin, Anne Collins; Walsh, Fran

2012-09-01

The hands of health care workers continue to be the main vector for nosocomial infection in hospitals. The purpose of the current research was to capture the health beliefs and self-reported behaviors of US health care workers to better understand why workers avoid hand hygiene and what prompts them to wash. An online survey of health care workers assessed their reasons for washing their hands, reasons for not washing, and what cues prompted the decision to wash or not wash in a variety of locations. The findings were that hand hygiene could be cued by an external situation but tended to be motivated internally. Hand hygiene was avoided because of situational barriers. The reasons for performing hand hygiene can be situated in the internally motivated Theory of Planned Behavior; however, the reasons for not performing hand hygiene tend to be situational and affected by the environment. The results may be used to design programs, products, and systems that promote appropriate hand hygiene practices. Principles for design of these programs and products are provided. Copyright © 2012 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Health workers' ICT literacy in a Nigerian University Teaching Hospital

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study investigated the ICT literacy among the health workers of Igbinedion University Teaching Hospital. The emergence of Internet for Telemedicine and health information revolution necessitates that issue of computer and other communication technology literacy among the health workers of Igbinedion University ...

Linking communities to formal health care providers through village health teams in rural Uganda: lessons from linking social capital.

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Musinguzi, Laban Kashaija; Turinawe, Emmanueil Benon; Rwemisisi, Jude T; de Vries, Daniel H; Mafigiri, David K; Muhangi, Denis; de Groot, Marije; Katamba, Achilles; Pool, Robert

2017-01-11

Community-based programmes, particularly community health workers (CHWs), have been portrayed as a cost-effective alternative to the shortage of health workers in low-income countries. Usually, literature emphasises how easily CHWs link and connect communities to formal health care services. There is little evidence in Uganda to support or dispute such claims. Drawing from linking social capital framework, this paper examines the claim that village health teams (VHTs), as an example of CHWs, link and connect communities with formal health care services. Data were collected through ethnographic fieldwork undertaken as part of a larger research program in Luwero District, Uganda, between 2012 and 2014. The main methods of data collection were participant observation in events organised by VHTs. In addition, a total of 91 in-depth interviews and 42 focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted with adult community members as part of the larger project. After preliminary analysis of the data, we conducted an additional six in-depth interviews and three FGD with VHTs and four FGD with community members on the role of VHTs. Key informant interviews were conducted with local government staff, health workers, local leaders, and NGO staff with health programs in Luwero. Thematic analysis was used during data analysis. The ability of VHTs to link communities with formal health care was affected by the stakeholders' perception of their roles. Community members perceive VHTs as working for and under instructions of "others", which makes them powerless in the formal health care system. One of the challenges associated with VHTs' linking roles is support from the government and formal health care providers. Formal health care providers perceived VHTs as interested in special recognition for their services yet they are not "experts". For some health workers, the introduction of VHTs is seen as a ploy by the government to control people and hide its inability to provide health

[A Literature Review of Health Effects on Workers in Disasters].

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Igarashi, Yu; Mori, Koji

2015-09-01

Various types of disasters, such as natural disasters, industrial accidents and crimes, often occur in the workplace and many workers are involved in them. They are not only directly injured but also exposed to health hazards, such as terrible experiences and chemical materials. Occupational health specialists are expected to act to minimize the adverse health effects from them speedily and appropriately. It is assumed that learning from past cases is effective for such occupational health activities. Accordingly, we conducted a literature review about the health effects on workers in disasters. Relevant literature was searched in PubMed. Twenty four studies were extracted by our criteria. In this review, subjects were limited to general workers by excluding professional workers, such as emergency services and firefighters. The health effects were examined as follows: mental health (13 articles), respiratory (5), cardiovascular (2), musculoskeletal (1), skin (1), nervous (1), and general (1). It was obvious that few studies on general workers were published when considering large number of disasters in the past. Factors that affect health outcomes were categorized into ① those related to devastation of environment of work and life due to disaster, and ② those related to health hazards due to disasters. Knowledge from the review will support the activities of occupational health specialists during disasters, but additional studies are needed.

Worker Sorting, Taxes and Health Insurance Coverage

OpenAIRE

Kevin Lang; Hong Kang

2007-01-01

We develop a model in which firms hire heterogeneous workers but must offer all workers insurance benefits under similar terms. In equilibrium, some firms offer free health insurance, some require an employee premium payment and some do not offer insurance. Making the employee contribution pre-tax lowers the cost to workers of a given employee premium and encourages more firms to charge. This increases the offer rate, lowers the take-up rate, increases (decreases) coverage among high (low) de...

Poor retention does not have to be the rule: retention of volunteer community health workers in Uganda.

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Ludwick, Teralynn; Brenner, Jennifer L; Kyomuhangi, Teddy; Wotton, Kathryn A; Kabakyenga, Jerome Kahuma

2014-05-01

Globally, health worker shortages continue to plague developing countries. Community health workers are increasingly being promoted to extend primary health care to underserved populations. Since 2004, Healthy Child Uganda (HCU) has trained volunteer community health workers in child health promotion in rural southwest Uganda. This study analyses the retention and motivation of volunteer community health workers trained by HCU. It presents retention rates over a 5-year period and provides insight into volunteer motivation. The findings are based on a 2010 retrospective review of the community health worker registry and the results of a survey on selection and motivation. The survey was comprised of qualitative and quantitative questions and verbally administered to a convenience sample of project participants. Between February 2004 and July 2009, HCU trained 404 community health workers (69% female) in 175 villages. Volunteers had an average age of 36.7 years, 4.9 children and some primary school education. Ninety-six per cent of volunteer community health workers were retained after 1 year (389/404), 91% after 2 years (386/404) and 86% after 5 years (101/117). Of the 54 'dropouts', main reasons cited for discontinuation included 'too busy' (12), moved (11), business/employment (8), death (6) and separation/divorce (6). Of 58 questionnaire respondents, most (87%) reported having been selected at an inclusive community meeting. Pair-wise ranking was used to assess the importance of seven 'motivational factors' among respondents. Those highest ranked were 'improved child health', 'education/training' and 'being asked for advice/assistance by peers', while the modest 'transport allowance' ranked lowest. Our findings suggest that in our rural, African setting, volunteer community health workers can be retained over the medium term. Community health worker programmes should invest in community involvement in selection, quality training, supportive supervision and

Immigrant health workers in Chile: is there a Latin American "brain drain"?

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Baltica Cabieses

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Most research on the phenomenon of "brain drain" (one-way flow of highly skilled/educated individuals has focused on movement between the least developed and most highly developed countries. Therefore, the significance of patterns of migration to middle-income countries such as those in Latin America is less clear. The aim of this study was to outline key features of international health worker "brain drain" to Chile to promote discussion and further research on this phenomenon as it pertains to the Latin American region. The study compared immigrant health workers living in Chile to both Chilean-born health workers and other immigrants living in Chile using a qualitative nationwide dataset (the results of Chile's 2009 National Socioeconomic Characterization Survey. Demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related variables were included in the analyses, which were weighted by population to obtain nationally representative estimates. In 2009, immigrant health workers represented 2.2% of all health personnel and 2.6% of all resident immigrants in the country. While most immigrant health workers had a universitylevel education, about 25% had only a high school-level education or less. There was no statistically significant difference between the distribution of immigrant health workers' household income and that of Chilean-born health workers. A significantly higher proportion of the immigrant group reported no entitlement to health care provision. While the results of this study do not indicate a significant international health worker "brain drain" to Chile, they do suggest distinctive patterns of migration within the Latin American region. Future studies in Chile could confirm the validity of these results, using a larger sample of immigrant health workers.

Immigrant health workers in Chile: is there a Latin American "brain drain"?

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Cabieses, Baltica; Tunstall, Helena

2012-08-01

Most research on the phenomenon of "brain drain" (one-way flow of highly skilled/educated individuals) has focused on movement between the least developed and most highly developed countries. Therefore, the significance of patterns of migration to middle-income countries such as those in Latin America is less clear. The aim of this study was to outline key features of international health worker "brain drain" to Chile to promote discussion and further research on this phenomenon as it pertains to the Latin American region. The study compared immigrant health workers living in Chile to both Chilean-born health workers and other immigrants living in Chile using a qualitative nationwide dataset (the results of Chile's 2009 National Socioeconomic Characterization Survey). Demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related variables were included in the analyses, which were weighted by population to obtain nationally representative estimates. In 2009, immigrant health workers represented 2.2% of all health personnel and 2.6% of all resident immigrants in the country. While most immigrant health workers had a universitylevel education, about 25% had only a high school-level education or less. There was no statistically significant difference between the distribution of immigrant health workers' household income and that of Chilean-born health workers. A significantly higher proportion of the immigrant group reported no entitlement to health care provision. While the results of this study do not indicate a significant international health worker "brain drain" to Chile, they do suggest distinctive patterns of migration within the Latin American region. Future studies in Chile could confirm the validity of these results, using a larger sample of immigrant health workers.

Health problems among sawmill workers in Abakaliki and workplace ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Introduction: Sawmill workers are exposed to hazards and subsequent health problems. A workplace risk assessment and risk control measures will reduce morbidity and mortality. The objectives of this study are to identify health problems and carry out a workplace risk assessment among sawmill workers in Abakaliki.

Improving occupational health care for construction workers: a process evaluation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boschman, Julitta S.; van der Molen, Henk F.; Sluiter, Judith K.; Frings-Dresen, Monique H. W.

2013-01-01

To evaluate the process of a job-specific workers' health surveillance (WHS) in improving occupational health care for construction workers. From January to July 2012 were 899 bricklayers and supervisors invited for the job-specific WHS at three locations of one occupational health service

Burnout and self-reported suboptimal patient care amongst health care workers providing HIV care in Malawi

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Mazenga, Alick C.; Simon, Katie; Yu, Xiaoying; Ahmed, Saeed; Nyasulu, Phoebe; Kazembe, Peter N.; Ngoma, Stanley; Abrams, Elaine J.

2018-01-01

Background The well-documented shortages of health care workers (HCWs) in sub-Saharan Africa are further intensified by the increased human resource needs of expanding HIV treatment programs. Burnout is a syndrome of emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and a sense of low personal accomplishment (PA). HCWs’ burnout can negatively impact the delivery of health services. Our main objective was to examine the prevalence of burnout amongst HCWs in Malawi and explore its relationship to self-reported suboptimal patient care. Methods A cross-sectional study among HCWs providing HIV care in 89 facilities, across eight districts in Malawi was conducted. Burnout was measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory defined as scores in the mid-high range on the EE or DP subscales. Nine questions adapted for this study assessed self-reported suboptimal patient care. Surveys were administered anonymously and included socio-demographic and work-related questions. Validated questionnaires assessed depression and at-risk alcohol use. Chi-square test or two-sample t-test was used to explore associations between variables and self-reported suboptimal patient care. Bivariate analyses identified candidate variables (p burnout. In the three dimensions of burnout, 55% reported moderate-high EE, 31% moderate-high DP, and 46% low-moderate PA. The majority (89%) reported engaging in suboptimal patient care/attitudes including making mistakes in treatment not due to lack of knowledge/experience (52%), shouting at patients (45%), and not performing diagnostic tests due to a desire to finish quickly (35%). In multivariate analysis, only burnout remained associated with self-reported suboptimal patient care (OR 3.22, [CI 2.11 to 4.90]; pBurnout was common among HCWs providing HIV care and was associated with self-reported suboptimal patient care practices/attitudes. Research is needed to understand factors that contribute to and protect against burnout and that inform the

Occupational health physicians and the impact of the Great Recession on the health of workers: a qualitative study.

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Mattei, G; Ferrari, Silvia; Giubbarelli, G; Pingani, L; Urraci, G M; Rigatelli, M; Galeazzi, G M

2015-11-22

Italy is one of the Eurozone members where the 2008 "Great Recession" struck worst, with a 9% drop in national GDP between 2008 and 2013. The negative effects of the recession on the health of the Italian population were documented on a nation-wide level. However, few local or regional studies are currently available in the scientific literature. To assess the impact on workers' health of the economic recession in the industrial area of Sassuolo (Modena, Northern Italy), and to provide recommendations for targeted interventions. Two focus groups were conducted, involving 8 occupational health physicians (OHPs) active in the area. Rough descriptions were analyzed using MAXQDA 11, according to the principles of grounded theory. 261 segments were coded, divided into four areas. The first, "changes in contemporary world", pointed out that the recession may have just made pre-existing problems worse, accelerating reductions in staff and workers' benefits. The second, "social area", highlighted a decrease in vertical social capital and the beginning of new trends in emigration. The third, "work area", covered workers' fear of losing their jobs if they were ill and a reduction in horizontal social capital, namely difficult relations between co-workers. The fourth, "medical area", indicated a general worsening of workers' health in the Sassuolo ceramic district compared to previous years. The OHPs reported an increase in muscular-skeletal complaints, gastritis, tension-type headache, irritable bowel syndrome symptoms, back pain, panic attacks, insomnia, tachycardia, and other medically unexplained symptoms. Anxiety problems seemed to prevail over depressive manifestations. An increase was reported for antidepressants and benzodiazepines consumption. The local impact of the economic crisis on health was mainly negative, consistent with available national data. Mental health professionals could work together with OHPs, e.g., through Balint Group-like meetings, to develop

Dilemmas in providing resilience-enhancing social services to long-term social assistance clients. A qualitative study of Swedish social workers

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Marttila Anneli

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Long-term recipients of social assistance face barriers to social and economic inclusion, and have poorer health and more limited opportunities for improving their health than many other groups in the population. During recent decades there have been changes in Swedish social policy, with cutbacks in public benefits and a re-emphasis on means-tested policies. In this context, it is important to investigate the necessary conditions for social workers to offer social assistance and services, as well as the mediating role of social workers between public policies and their clients. Swedish social services aim to promote social inclusion by strengthening the individual´s own resources. We investigated the issues that arise when providing social services to long-term social assistance clients within the framework of resilience, which focuses on the processes leading to positive functioning in adverse conditions. Methods Interviews were conducted with 23 social workers in Stockholm and analysed by qualitative content analysis. Results The main theme to emerge from the interviews concerned the constraints that the social workers faced in providing social services to social assistance clients. The first subtheme focused on dilemmas in the interaction between social workers and clients resulting from the dual role of exercising authority and supporting and building trust with clients. Working conditions of social workers also played a crucial role. The second subtheme addressed the impact of the societal context, such as labour market opportunities and coordination between authorities. Conclusions Overall, we found that social workers to a great extent tried to find individual solutions to structural problems. To provide resilience-enhancing social services to long-term social assistance clients with varying obstacles and needs requires a constructive working environment, supportive societal structures and inter-sectoral cooperation

Dilemmas in providing resilience-enhancing social services to long-term social assistance clients. A qualitative study of Swedish social workers.

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Marttila, Anneli; Johansson, Eva; Whitehead, Margaret; Burström, Bo

2012-07-12

Long-term recipients of social assistance face barriers to social and economic inclusion, and have poorer health and more limited opportunities for improving their health than many other groups in the population. During recent decades there have been changes in Swedish social policy, with cutbacks in public benefits and a re-emphasis on means-tested policies. In this context, it is important to investigate the necessary conditions for social workers to offer social assistance and services, as well as the mediating role of social workers between public policies and their clients. Swedish social services aim to promote social inclusion by strengthening the individual's own resources. We investigated the issues that arise when providing social services to long-term social assistance clients within the framework of resilience, which focuses on the processes leading to positive functioning in adverse conditions. Interviews were conducted with 23 social workers in Stockholm and analysed by qualitative content analysis. The main theme to emerge from the interviews concerned the constraints that the social workers faced in providing social services to social assistance clients. The first subtheme focused on dilemmas in the interaction between social workers and clients resulting from the dual role of exercising authority and supporting and building trust with clients. Working conditions of social workers also played a crucial role. The second subtheme addressed the impact of the societal context, such as labour market opportunities and coordination between authorities. Overall, we found that social workers to a great extent tried to find individual solutions to structural problems. To provide resilience-enhancing social services to long-term social assistance clients with varying obstacles and needs requires a constructive working environment, supportive societal structures and inter-sectoral cooperation between different authorities.

Motivating and demotivating factors for community health workers: A qualitative study in urban slums of Delhi, India.

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George, Mathew Sunil; Pant, Shradha; Devasenapathy, Niveditha; Ghosh-Jerath, Suparna; Zodpey, Sanjay P

2017-04-01

Background Community health workers play an important role in delivering health-care services, especially to underserved populations in low- and middle-income countries. They have been shown to be successful in providing a range of preventive, promotive and curative services. This qualitative study investigated the factors motivating or demotivating community health workers in urban settings in Delhi, India. Methods In this sub-study of the ANCHUL (Ante Natal and Child Healthcare in Urban Slums) implementation research project, four focus-group discussions and nine in-depth interviews were conducted with community health workers and medical officers. Utilizing a reflexive and inductive qualitative methodology, the data set was coded, to allow categories of motivating and demotivating factors to emerge. Results Motivating factors identified were: support from family members for their work, improved self-identity, job satisfaction and a sense of social responsibility, prior experiences of ill health, the opportunity to acquire new skills and knowledge, social recognition and status conferred by the community, and flexible work and timings. Negative experiences in the community and at health centres, constraints in the local health system in response to the demand generated by the community health workers, and poor pay demotivated community health workers in this study, even causing some to quit their jobs. Conclusion Community-health-worker programmes that focus on ensuring the technical capacity of their staff may not give adequate attention to the factors that motivate or discourage these workers. As efforts get under way to ensure universal access to health care, it is important that these issues are recognized and addressed, to ensure that community health worker programmes are effective and sustainable.

Health workers and the weaponisation of health care in Syria: a preliminary inquiry for The Lancet-American University of Beirut Commission on Syria.

Science.gov (United States)

Fouad, Fouad M; Sparrow, Annie; Tarakji, Ahmad; Alameddine, Mohamad; El-Jardali, Fadi; Coutts, Adam P; El Arnaout, Nour; Karroum, Lama Bou; Jawad, Mohammed; Roborgh, Sophie; Abbara, Aula; Alhalabi, Fadi; AlMasri, Ibrahim; Jabbour, Samer

2017-12-02

The conflict in Syria presents new and unprecedented challenges that undermine the principles and practice of medical neutrality in armed conflict. With direct and repeated targeting of health workers, health facilities, and ambulances, Syria has become the most dangerous place on earth for health-care providers. The weaponisation of health care-a strategy of using people's need for health care as a weapon against them by violently depriving them of it-has translated into hundreds of health workers killed, hundreds more incarcerated or tortured, and hundreds of health facilities deliberately and systematically attacked. Evidence shows use of this strategy on an unprecedented scale by the Syrian Government and allied forces, in what human rights organisations described as a war-crime strategy, although all parties seem to have committed violations. Attacks on health care have sparked a large-scale exodus of experienced health workers. Formidable challenges face health workers who have stayed behind, and with no health care a major factor in the flight of refugees, the effect extends well beyond Syria. The international community has left these violations of international humanitarian and human rights law largely unanswered, despite their enormous consequences. There have been repudiated denunciations, but little action on bringing the perpetrators to justice. This inadequate response challenges the foundation of medical neutrality needed to sustain the operations of global health and humanitarian agencies in situations of armed conflict. In this Health Policy, we analyse the situation of health workers facing such systematic and serious violations of international humanitarian law. We describe the tremendous pressures that health workers have been under and continue to endure, and the remarkable resilience and resourcefulness they have displayed in response to this crisis. We propose policy imperatives to protect and support health workers working in armed conflict

Exploring stigma by association among front-line care providers serving sex workers.

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Phillips, Rachel; Benoit, Cecilia

2013-10-01

Stigma by association, also referred to as "courtesy stigma," involves public disapproval evoked as a consequence of associating with stigmatized persons. While a small number of sociological studies have shown how stigma by association limits the social support and social opportunities available to family members, there is a paucity of research examining this phenomenon among the large network of persons who provide health and social services to stigmatized groups. This paper presents results from a primarily qualitative study of the work-place experiences of a purposive sample of staff from an organization providing services to sex workers. The findings suggest that stigma by association has an impact on staff health because it shapes both the workplace environment as well as staff perceptions of others' support. At the same time, it is evident that some staff, owing to their more advantaged social location, are better able to manage courtesy stigma than others. Copyright © 2013 Longwoods Publishing.

mutual participation in the health worker-patient relationship

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Medunsa) ... Keywords: mutual participation, health worker-patient relationship, decision ... The importance of a mutual participatory model in medical care and decision ... workers become aware of differences in opinion or in the balance of power, ...

A cascade model of mentorship for frontline health workers in rural health facilities in Eastern Uganda: processes, achievements and lessons.

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Ajeani, Judith; Mangwi Ayiasi, Richard; Tetui, Moses; Ekirapa-Kiracho, Elizabeth; Namazzi, Gertrude; Muhumuza Kananura, Ronald; Namusoke Kiwanuka, Suzanne; Beyeza-Kashesya, Jolly

2017-08-01

There is increasing demand for trainers to shift from traditional didactic training to innovative approaches that are more results-oriented. Mentorship is one such approach that could bridge the clinical knowledge gap among health workers. This paper describes the experiences of an attempt to improve health-worker performance in maternal and newborn health in three rural districts through a mentoring process using the cascade model. The paper further highlights achievements and lessons learnt during implementation of the cascade model. The cascade model started with initial training of health workers from three districts of Pallisa, Kibuku and Kamuli from where potential local mentors were selected for further training and mentorship by central mentors. These local mentors then went on to conduct mentorship visits supported by the external mentors. The mentorship process concentrated on partograph use, newborn resuscitation, prevention and management of Post-Partum Haemorrhage (PPH), including active management of third stage of labour, preeclampsia management and management of the sick newborn. Data for this paper was obtained from key informant interviews with district-level managers and local mentors. Mentorship improved several aspects of health-care delivery, ranging from improved competencies and responsiveness to emergencies and health-worker professionalism. In addition, due to better district leadership for Maternal and Newborn Health (MNH), there were improved supplies/medicine availability, team work and innovative local problem-solving approaches. Health workers were ultimately empowered to perform better. The study demonstrated that it is possible to improve the competencies of frontline health workers through performance enhancement for MNH services using locally built capacity in clinical mentorship for Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (EmONC). The cascade mentoring process needed strong external mentorship support at the start to ensure improved

Psychosocial support and resilience building among health workers in Sierra Leone: interrelations between coping skills, stress levels, and interpersonal relationships.

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Vesel, Linda; Waller, Kathryn; Dowden, Justine; Fotso, Jean Christophe

2015-01-01

In low- and middle-income countries, a shortage of properly trained, supervised, motivated and equitably distributed health workers often hinder the delivery of lifesaving interventions. Various health workforce bottlenecks can be addressed by tackling well-being and interpersonal relationships of health workers with their colleagues and clients. This paper uses data from the Helping Health Workers Cope (HHWC) project in a rural district of Sierra Leone to achieve three objectives. First, we describe the effect of counseling and psychosocial training on coping skills, stress levels, and provider-provider and provider-client relationships. Second, we examine whether a change in coping skills is associated with a change in relationships. Finally, we qualitatively identify key ways through which the uptake of coping skills is linked to a change in relationships. The HHWC project was implemented from February 2012 to June 2013 in Kono district in the Eastern province of Sierra Leone, with the neighboring district of Tonkolili selected as the control site. The evaluation followed a mixed-methods approach, which included a quantitative survey, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with health workers and clients. Mean values of the variables of interest were compared across sub-populations, and correlation analyses were performed between changes in coping skills, stress levels, and changes in relationships. Overall, the results demonstrate that the HHWC intervention had a positive effect on coping skills, stress levels and provider-provider and provider-client relationships. Furthermore, associations were observed between changes in coping skills and changes in relationships as well as changes in stress management skills and changes in relationships. Psychosocial education can have major impacts on health worker well-being and the quality of health care delivery. Integrating psychosocial counseling and training interventions into health worker pre-service and

Universal Coverage without Universal Access: Institutional Barriers to Health Care among Women Sex Workers in Vancouver, Canada

OpenAIRE

Soc?as, M. Eugenia; Shoveller, Jean; Bean, Chili; Nguyen, Paul; Montaner, Julio; Shannon, Kate

2016-01-01

Background Access to health care is a crucial determinant of health. Yet, even within settings that purport to provide universal health coverage (UHC), sex workers? experiences reveal systematic, institutionally ingrained barriers to appropriate quality health care. The aim of this study was to assess prevalence and correlates of institutional barriers to care among sex workers in a setting with UHC. Methods Data was drawn from an ongoing community-based, prospective cohort of women sex worke...

The persistent gap in health-care coverage between low- and high-income workers in Washington State: BRFSS, 2003-2007.

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Fan, Z Joyce; Anderson, Naomi J; Foley, Michael; Rauser, Eddy; Silverstein, Barbara A

2011-01-01

We examined the disparities in health-care coverage between low- and high-income workers in Washington State (WA) to provide support for possible policy decisions for uninsured workers. We examined data from the WA Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2003-2007 and compared workers aged 18-64 years of low income (annual household income income (annual household income ≥$35,000) on proportions and sources of health-care coverage. We conducted multivariable logistic regression analyses on factors that were associated with the uninsured. Of the 54,536 survey respondents who were working-age adults in WA, 13,922 (25.5%) were low-income workers. The proportions of uninsured were 38.2% for low-income workers and 6.3% for high-income workers. While employment-based health benefits remained a dominant source of health insurance coverage, they covered only 40.2% of low-income workers relative to 81.5% of high-income workers. Besides income, workers were more likely to be uninsured if they were younger; male; Hispanic; less educated; not married; current smokers; self-employed; or employed in agriculture/forestry/fisheries, construction, and retail. More low-income workers (28.7%) reported cost as an issue in paying for health services than did their high-income counterparts (6.7%). A persistent gap in health-care coverage exists between low- and high-income workers. The identified characteristics of these workers can be used to implement policies to expand health insurance coverage.

Information needs of health care workers in developing countries: a literature review with a focus on Africa

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Bukachi Frederick

2009-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Health care workers in developing countries continue to lack access to basic, practical information to enable them to deliver safe, effective care. This paper provides the first phase of a broader literature review of the information and learning needs of health care providers in developing countries. A Medline search revealed 1762 papers, of which 149 were identified as potentially relevant to the review. Thirty-five of these were found to be highly relevant. Eight of the 35 studies looked at information needs as perceived by health workers, patients and family/community members; 14 studies assessed the knowledge of health workers; and 8 looked at health care practice. The studies suggest a gross lack of knowledge about the basics on how to diagnose and manage common diseases, going right across the health workforce and often associated with suboptimal, ineffective and dangerous health care practices. If this level of knowledge and practice is representative, as it appears to be, it indicates that modern medicine, even at a basic level, has largely failed the majority of the world's population. The information and learning needs of family caregivers and primary and district health workers have been ignored for too long. Improving the availability and use of relevant, reliable health care information has enormous potential to radically improve health care worldwide.

Developing Community Health Worker Diabetes Training

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Ferguson, W. J.; Lemay, C. A.; Hargraves, J. L.; Gorodetsky, T.; Calista, J.

2012-01-01

We designed, implemented and evaluated a 48-hour training program for community health workers (CHWs) deployed to diabetes care teams in community health centers (CHCs). The curriculum included core knowledge/skills with diabetes content to assist CHWs in developing patient self-management goals. Our qualitative evaluation included…

Violence towards health care workers in a Public Health Care Facility in Italy: a repeated cross-sectional study

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Magnavita Nicola

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Violence at work is one of the major concerns in health care activities. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of physical and non-physical violence in a general health care facility in Italy and to assess the relationship between violence and psychosocial factors, thereby providing a basis for appropriate intervention. Methods All health care workers from a public health care facility were invited to complete a questionnaire containing questions on workplace violence. Three questionnaire-based cross-sectional surveys were conducted. The response rate was 75 % in 2005, 71 % in 2007, and 94 % in 2009. The 2009 questionnaire contained the VIF (Violent Incident Form for reporting violent incidents, the DCS (demand/control/support model for job strain, the Colquitt 20 item questionnaire for perceived organizational justice, and the GHQ-12 General Health Questionnaire for the assessment of mental health. Results One out of ten workers reported physical assault, and one out of three exposure to non-physical violence in the workplace in the previous year. Nurses and physicians were the most exposed occupational categories, whereas the psychiatric and emergency departments were the services at greatest risk of violence. Workers exposed to non-physical violence were subject to high job strain, low support, low perceived organizational justice, and high psychological distress. Conclusion Our study shows that health care workers in an Italian local health care facility are exposed to violence. Workplace violence was associated with high demand and psychological disorders, while job control, social support and organizational justice were protective factors.

Violence towards health care workers in a Public Health Care Facility in Italy: a repeated cross-sectional study

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Violence at work is one of the major concerns in health care activities. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of physical and non-physical violence in a general health care facility in Italy and to assess the relationship between violence and psychosocial factors, thereby providing a basis for appropriate intervention. Methods All health care workers from a public health care facility were invited to complete a questionnaire containing questions on workplace violence. Three questionnaire-based cross-sectional surveys were conducted. The response rate was 75 % in 2005, 71 % in 2007, and 94 % in 2009. The 2009 questionnaire contained the VIF (Violent Incident Form) for reporting violent incidents, the DCS (demand/control/support) model for job strain, the Colquitt 20 item questionnaire for perceived organizational justice, and the GHQ-12 General Health Questionnaire for the assessment of mental health. Results One out of ten workers reported physical assault, and one out of three exposure to non-physical violence in the workplace in the previous year. Nurses and physicians were the most exposed occupational categories, whereas the psychiatric and emergency departments were the services at greatest risk of violence. Workers exposed to non-physical violence were subject to high job strain, low support, low perceived organizational justice, and high psychological distress. Conclusion Our study shows that health care workers in an Italian local health care facility are exposed to violence. Workplace violence was associated with high demand and psychological disorders, while job control, social support and organizational justice were protective factors. PMID:22551645

Potential allergy and irritation incidents among health care workers.

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Alamgir, Hasanat; Yu, Shicheng; Chavoshi, Negar; Ngan, Karen

2008-07-01

This study describes the types, causes, and outcomes of potential irritation and allergy incidents among workers in British Columbia's health care industry. Data on occupation-induced allergy and irritation incidents were extracted from a standardized database using the number of productive hours obtained from payroll data as a denominator during a 1-year period from three British Columbia health regions. Younger workers, female workers, facility support service workers, laboratory assistants and technicians, and maintenance and acute care workers were found to be at higher risk for allergy and irritation incidents. Major causes of allergy and irritation incidents included chemicals, blood and body fluids, food and objects, communicable diseases, air quality, and latex. A larger proportion of chemically induced incidents resulted in first aid care only, whereas non-chemical incidents required more emergency room visits.

Measuring and understanding motivation among community health workers in rural health facilities in India-a mixed method study

OpenAIRE

Tripathy, Jaya Prasad; Goel, Sonu; Kumar, Ajay M. V.

2016-01-01

Background Motivated human resource is the key to improve health system performance and retention of health workers. There is scanty literature on measuring motivation of health workers in India. Thus, the objective of this study was to measure and identify important aspects of health workers? motivation in North India. Methods A mixed method study design was adopted. Under the quantitative component, we interviewed randomly selected 62 community health workers (CHWs) in 18 sub-centres in two...

Dust exposure and health of workers in duck hatcheries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marie-Thérèse Guillam

2017-07-01

Hatchery workers were at increased risk of compromised respiratory health due to dust exposure, particularly those who work in sorting rooms. Asthma and rhinitis were in excess in this population of workers. Thorough clinical examination of these workers should be performed and all exposures assessed.

Protecting health workers from nosocomial Hepatitis B infections: A review of strategies and challenges for implementation of Hepatitis B vaccination among health workers in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Malewezi, Bridget; Omer, Saad B; Mwagomba, Beatrice; Araru, Trish

2016-12-01

The Sub-Saharan region has the highest Hepatitis B virus (HBV) rates, and health workers are at an increased risk of contracting nosocomial HBV infection. Vaccination of health workers plays a critical role in protecting them from sequelae of HBV; however, health-worker vaccination remains a challenge for many countries. This study was conducted to review practices/measures and challenges in the Sub-Saharan region relating to vaccination of health workers against HBV. We performed a literature review of articles addressing any aspect of HBV vaccination of health workers in the Sub-Saharan region sourced from PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science, including a case study of Malawi policies and strategies in training institutions and facilities. Our findings indicated that HBV awareness and vaccination were relatively high, but vaccination rates were lower, with 4.6-64.4% of those "ever vaccinated" completing the vaccination regimen. There was also great variation in the proportion of health workers exhibiting natural immunity from previous exposure (positive for anti-Hepatitis B core antibodies; 41-92%). Commonly cited reasons for non-uptake of vaccine included cost, lack of awareness of vaccine availability, and inadequate information concerning the vaccine. Countries in this region will require locally relevant data to develop cost-effective strategies that maximize the benefit to their health workers due to the great diversity of HBV epidemiology in the region. Copyright © 2016 Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Performance of community health workers:situating their intermediary position within complex adaptive health systems

OpenAIRE

Kok, Maryse. C; Broerse, Jacqueline E.W; Theobald, Sally; Ormel, Hermen; Dieleman, Marjolein; Taegtmeyer, Miriam

2017-01-01

Health systems are social institutions, in which health worker performance is shaped by transactional processes between different actors. This analytical assessment unravels the complex web of factors that influence the performance of community health workers (CHWs) in low- and middle-income countries. It examines their unique intermediary position between the communities they serve and actors in the health sector, and the complexity of the health systems in which they operate. The assessment...

How occupational health is assessed in mine workers in Murmansk Oblast

Science.gov (United States)

Skandfer, Morten; Siurin, Sergei; Talykova, Ljudmila; Øvrum, Arild; Brenn, Tormod; Vaktskjold, Arild

2012-01-01

Objectives We aimed to describe how work exposure and occupational health is assessed for mine workers in Murmansk Oblast, Russia. Study design A descriptive study based on current practice, laws and available literature. Methods The information and data were obtained from scientific publications, reports, regional and federal statistics, legal documents, through personal visits and onsite inspections. Results Several institutions are involved in these assessments, but all mine workers have been examined by specialists at one institution, which helps to ensure that the work is of stable quality and adds reliability value to the numbers. Workplace risks are assigned hazard grades, which influence the frequency of periodic medical examinations and salary levels. The examinations are aimed to diagnose latent or manifest occupational disease. This may lead to relocation to a workplace with lower exposure levels, free medical treatment, compensation and a lower pension age. Conclusions Regulations and systems to protect the health of mine workers have more emphasis on control and repair than on prevention. Since relocation can lower the salary, some workers may under-report medical problems. To what degree this happens is unknown. The mining enterprises pay the medical service provider for periodic medical examinations, which could potentially weaken their independent role. This framework is important to understand when studying and assessing the health of working populations in the circumpolar region. PMID:22584515

Pushing the boundaries of research on human resources for health: fresh approaches to understanding health worker motivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatnagar, Aarushi; Scott, Kerry; Govender, Veloshnee; George, Asha

2018-04-01

A country's health workforce plays a vital role not only in serving the health needs of the population but also in supporting economic prosperity. Moreover, a well-funded and well-supported health workforce is vital to achieving universal health coverage and Sustainable Development Goal 3 to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. This perspective article highlights the potential of underutilized health policy and systems research (HPSR) approaches for developing more effective human resources for health policy. The example of health worker motivation is used to showcase four types of HPSR (exploratory, influence, explanatory and emancipatory) that move beyond describing the extent of a problem. Most of the current literature aiming to understand determinants and dynamics of motivation is descriptive in nature. While this is an important basis for all research pursuits, it often gives little information about mechanisms to improve motivation and strategies for intervention. Motivation is an essential determinant of health worker performance, particularly for those working in difficult conditions, such as those facing many health workers in low- and middle-income countries. Motivation mediates health workforce performance in multiple ways: internally governing health worker behaviour; informing decisions on becoming a health worker; workplace location and ability to perform; and influencing willingness to engage politically. The four fresh research approaches described can help policy-makers better understand why health workers behave the way they do, how interventions can improve performance, the mechanisms that lead to change, and strategies for empowering health workers to be agents of change themselves.

Knowledge, attitude and practice of pharmacists and health-care workers regarding oral contraceptives correct usage, side-effects and contraindications.

Science.gov (United States)

Sattari, M; Mokhtari, Z; Jabari, H; Mashayekhi, S O

2013-06-01

Despite the success of the Iranian family planning programme, the number of unwanted pregnancies remains high. To investigate whether health workers in Tabriz are providing correct information and counselling about OCP use, the current study was planned to examine the level of knowledge, attitude and practice of OCP providers. A sample of 150 health-care workers in health houses and 150 community/hospital pharmacists answered a questionnaire about knowledge of correct use of OCP, side-effects, contraindications, danger signs/symptoms and non-contraceptive benefits, and whether they counselled patients about these subjects. Knowledge of pharmacists and health workers was not as high as expected and in many topics they were counselling patients even when they had incorrect knowledge and in other areas they were not providing information to patients despite having the correct knowledge. Better continuing education for OCP providers and especially for pharmacists seems necessary.

Health promoting behaviors in industrial workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gulay Yilmazel

2015-04-01

CONCLUSIONS: Health promoting behaviors were found to be in moderate level among cement factory workers. In our country, health protection and development programs at the national level would be useful to standardize for employees in the industrial sector. [TAF Prev Med Bull 2015; 14(2.000: 153-162

Identity, Over-Commitment, Work Environment, and Health Outcomes among Immigrant Workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carla DAHL-JØRGENSEN

2010-11-01

Full Text Available In this study, we compared immigrant workers with native workers on several factors related to their perception of their work identity anchored in their psychosocial work environment, and the result of these factors on work stress and subjective health. The data for the study came from 924 employees in the Norwegian food and beverage and among them were 84 immigrant workers. We found significant differences in levels of over-commitment, mental health and stress between native and immigrant workers. Immigrant workers perceived more over-commitment, more mental health problems and higher job stress than native workers did. The personal ambitions of the immigrants, measured as a higher level of over-commitment was seen as a driving force behind the pattern we found. This could have been a possible threat to an increased level of stress leading to mental health problems, but commitment to the firm they worked in was found to have a compensating effect in the final path analysis.

Malaria training for community health workers in the setting of elimination: a qualitative study from China.

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Lu, Guangyu; Liu, Yaobao; Wang, Jinsong; Li, Xiangming; Liu, Xing; Beiersmann, Claudia; Feng, Yu; Cao, Jun; Müller, Olaf

2018-02-23

Continuous training of health workers is a key intervention to maintain their good performance and keep their vigilance during malaria elimination programmes. However, countries progressing toward malaria elimination have a largely decreased malaria disease burden, less frequent exposure of health workers to malaria patients, and new challenges in the epidemiology of the remaining malaria cases. Moreover, competing health priorities and usually a decline in resources and in political commitment also pose challenges to the elimination programme. As a consequence, the acceptability, sustainability, and impact of malaria training and education programmes face challenges. However, little is known of the perceptions and expectations of malaria training and education programmes of health workers being engaged in countries with malaria elimination programmes. This qualitative study provides information on perceptions and expectations of health workers of malaria training programmes from China, which aims to malaria elimination by the year 2020. This study was embedded into a larger study on the challenges and lessons learned during the malaria surveillance strategy in China, involving 42 interviews with malaria experts, health staff, laboratory practitioners, and village doctors at the provincial, city, county, township, and village levels from Gansu province (northwestern China) and Jiangsu province (southeastern China). In the context of an increasing number of imported malaria cases in China, the majority of respondents emphasized the necessity and importance of such programmes and complained about a decreasing frequency of training courses. Moreover, they called for innovative strategies to improve the implementation and sustainability of the malaria training programmes until the elimination goal has been achieved. Perceptions and expectations of health workers from different health centres were quite different. Health workers from higher-level facilities were more

Requiring influenza vaccination for health care workers: seven truths we must accept.

Science.gov (United States)

Poland, Gregory A; Tosh, Pritish; Jacobson, Robert M

2005-03-18

In this paper we outline the seven primary truths supporting the call for requiring influenza immunization of all health care workers. We view this as a serious patient safety issue, given the clear and compelling data regarding the frequency and severity of influenza infection. In addition, clear-cut safety, efficacy, economic, legal, and ethical platforms support the use of influenza vaccine. Unfortunately health care workers have demonstrated, over almost 25 years that they are unwilling to comply with voluntary influenza immunization programs utilizing a variety of education and incentive programs, at rates sufficient to protect the patients in their care. We suggest that an annual influenza immunization should be required for every health care worker with direct patient contact, unless a medical contraindication or religious objection exists, or an informed declination is signed by the health care worker. High rates of health care worker immunization will benefit patients, health care workers, their families and employers, and the communities within which they work and live.

Healthcare organization-education partnerships and career ladder programs for health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Dill, Janette S; Chuang, Emmeline; Morgan, Jennifer C

2014-12-01

Increasing concerns about quality of care and workforce shortages have motivated health care organizations and educational institutions to partner to create career ladders for frontline health care workers. Career ladders reward workers for gains in skills and knowledge and may reduce the costs associated with turnover, improve patient care, and/or address projected shortages of certain nursing and allied health professions. This study examines partnerships between health care and educational organizations in the United States during the design and implementation of career ladder training programs for low-skill workers in health care settings, referred to as frontline health care workers. Mixed methods data from 291 frontline health care workers and 347 key informants (e.g., administrators, instructors, managers) collected between 2007 and 2010 were analyzed using both regression and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). Results suggest that different combinations of partner characteristics, including having an education leader, employer leader, frontline management support, partnership history, community need, and educational policies, were necessary for high worker career self-efficacy and program satisfaction. Whether a worker received a wage increase, however, was primarily dependent on leadership within the health care organization, including having an employer leader and employer implementation policies. Findings suggest that strong partnerships between health care and educational organizations can contribute to the successful implementation of career ladder programs, but workers' ability to earn monetary rewards for program participation depends on the strength of leadership support within the health care organization. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Feasibility of Workplace Health Promotion for Restaurant Workers, Seattle, 2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Claire L; Hammerback, Kristen; Harris, Jeffrey R; Hannon, Peggy A; Parrish, Amanda T

2015-10-08

Restaurant workers are a large population at high risk for tobacco use, physical inactivity, and influenza. They are difficult to reach with health care interventions and may be more accessible through workplaces, yet few studies have explored the feasibility of workplace health promotion in this population. This study sought to identify barriers and facilitators to promotion of tobacco cessation, physical activity, and influenza vaccination in restaurants. Moderators conducted 7 focus groups, 3 with restaurant owners and managers, 2 with English-speaking workers, and 2 with Spanish-speaking workers. All groups were recorded, and recordings were transcribed and uploaded to qualitative-analysis software. Two researchers coded each transcript independently and analyzed codes and quotations for common themes. Seventy people from the restaurant industry participated. Barriers to workplace health promotion included smoking-break customs, little interest in physical activity outside of work, and misinformation about influenza vaccinations. Facilitators included creating and enforcing equitable break policies and offering free, on-site influenza vaccinations. Spanish-speakers were particularly amenable to vaccination, despite their perceptions of low levels of management support for health promotion overall. Owners required a strong business case to consider investing in long-term prevention for their employees. Tobacco cessation and influenza vaccinations are opportunities for health promotion among restaurant workers, whereas physical activity interventions face greater challenges. Promotion of equitable breaks, limited smoking-break policies, and free, on-site influenza vaccinations could improve health for restaurant workers, who often do not have health insurance. Workplace interventions may be particularly important for Hispanic workers who have additional access barriers.

Hepatitis B vaccination status among health workers in Enugu, Nigeria

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Subjects were health workers likely to be exposed to patients and or their body fluids. The tool was a self administered pre-tested questionnaire and analysis was ... and no post exposure prophylaxis among health workers in UNTH, Enugu.

Universal Coverage without Universal Access: Institutional Barriers to Health Care among Women Sex Workers in Vancouver, Canada.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M Eugenia Socías

Full Text Available Access to health care is a crucial determinant of health. Yet, even within settings that purport to provide universal health coverage (UHC, sex workers' experiences reveal systematic, institutionally ingrained barriers to appropriate quality health care. The aim of this study was to assess prevalence and correlates of institutional barriers to care among sex workers in a setting with UHC.Data was drawn from an ongoing community-based, prospective cohort of women sex workers in Vancouver, Canada (An Evaluation of Sex Workers' Health Access. Multivariable logistic regression analyses, using generalized estimating equations (GEE, were employed to longitudinally investigate correlates of institutional barriers to care over a 44-month follow-up period (January 2010-August 2013.In total, 723 sex workers were included, contributing to 2506 observations. Over the study period, 509 (70.4% women reported one or more institutional barriers to care. The most commonly reported institutional barriers to care were long wait times (54.6%, limited hours of operation (36.5%, and perceived disrespect by health care providers (26.1%. In multivariable GEE analyses, recent partner- (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.46, % 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.10-1.94, workplace- (AOR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.05-1.63, and community-level violence (AOR = 1.41, 95% CI 1.04-1.92, as well as other markers of vulnerability, such as self-identification as a gender/sexual minority (AOR = 1.32, 95% CI 1.03-1.69, a mental illness diagnosis (AOR = 1.66, 95% CI 1.34-2.06, and lack of provincial health insurance card (AOR = 3.47, 95% CI 1.59-7.57 emerged as independent correlates of institutional barriers to health services.Despite Canada's UHC, women sex workers in Vancouver face high prevalence of institutional barriers to care, with highest burden among most marginalized women. These findings underscore the need to explore new models of care, alongside broader policy changes to fulfill sex

Universal Coverage without Universal Access: Institutional Barriers to Health Care among Women Sex Workers in Vancouver, Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Socías, M Eugenia; Shoveller, Jean; Bean, Chili; Nguyen, Paul; Montaner, Julio; Shannon, Kate

2016-01-01

Access to health care is a crucial determinant of health. Yet, even within settings that purport to provide universal health coverage (UHC), sex workers' experiences reveal systematic, institutionally ingrained barriers to appropriate quality health care. The aim of this study was to assess prevalence and correlates of institutional barriers to care among sex workers in a setting with UHC. Data was drawn from an ongoing community-based, prospective cohort of women sex workers in Vancouver, Canada (An Evaluation of Sex Workers' Health Access). Multivariable logistic regression analyses, using generalized estimating equations (GEE), were employed to longitudinally investigate correlates of institutional barriers to care over a 44-month follow-up period (January 2010-August 2013). In total, 723 sex workers were included, contributing to 2506 observations. Over the study period, 509 (70.4%) women reported one or more institutional barriers to care. The most commonly reported institutional barriers to care were long wait times (54.6%), limited hours of operation (36.5%), and perceived disrespect by health care providers (26.1%). In multivariable GEE analyses, recent partner- (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.46, % 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.10-1.94), workplace- (AOR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.05-1.63), and community-level violence (AOR = 1.41, 95% CI 1.04-1.92), as well as other markers of vulnerability, such as self-identification as a gender/sexual minority (AOR = 1.32, 95% CI 1.03-1.69), a mental illness diagnosis (AOR = 1.66, 95% CI 1.34-2.06), and lack of provincial health insurance card (AOR = 3.47, 95% CI 1.59-7.57) emerged as independent correlates of institutional barriers to health services. Despite Canada's UHC, women sex workers in Vancouver face high prevalence of institutional barriers to care, with highest burden among most marginalized women. These findings underscore the need to explore new models of care, alongside broader policy changes to fulfill sex workers

Adverse health problems among municipality workers in alexandria (egypt).

Science.gov (United States)

Abd El-Wahab, Ekram W; Eassa, Safaa M; Lotfi, Sameh E; El Masry, Sanaa A; Shatat, Hanan Z; Kotkat, Amira M

2014-05-01

Solid waste management has emerged as an important human and environmental health issue. Municipal solid waste workers (MSWWs) are potentially exposed to a variety of occupational biohazards and safety risks. The aim of this study was to describe health practices and safety measures adopted by workers in the main municipal company in Alexandria (Egypt) as well as the pattern of the encountered work related ill health. A cross-sectional study was conducted between January and April 2013. We interviewed and evaluated 346 workers serving in about 15 different solid waste management activities regarding personal hygiene, the practice of security and health care measures and the impact of solid waste management. Poor personal hygiene and self-care, inadequate protective and safety measures for potentially hazardous exposure were described. Impact of solid waste management on health of MSWWs entailed high prevalence of gastrointestinal, respiratory, skin and musculoskeletal morbidities. Occurrence of accidents and needle stick injuries amounted to 46.5% and 32.7% respectively. The risk of work related health disorders was notably higher among workers directly exposed to solid waste when compared by a group of low exposure potential particularly for diarrhea (odds ratio [OR] = 2.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.2-3.8), vomiting (OR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.1-6.6), abdominal colic (OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.1-3.2), dysentery (OR = 3.6, 95% CI = 1.3-10), dyspepsia (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.1-3), low back/sciatic pain (OR = 3.5, 95% CI = 1.8-7), tinnitus (OR = 6.2, 95% CI = 0.3-122) and needle stick injury (OR = 3.4, 95% CI = 2.1-5.5). Workers exposed to solid waste exhibit significant increase in risk of ill health. Physician role and health education could be the key to assure the MSWWs health safety.

Who strategies and action to protect and promote the health of workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivan Dimov Ivanov

2007-12-01

Full Text Available WHO's action on protecting and promoting the health of workers is mandated by the Constitution of the Organization and a number of resolutions of the World Health Assembly. Recognizing that occupational health is closely linked to public health and health systems development, WHO is addressing all determinants of workers' health, including risks for disease and injury in the occupational environment, social and individual factors, and access to health services. Furthermore, the workplace is being used as a setting for protecting and promoting the health of workers and their families. Concerned that despite the existence of effective interventions to prevent occupational diseases and injuries there are still major gaps in the health status of workers between and within countries, the 60th World Health Assembly in 2007 endorsed the Global Plan of Action on Workers' Health. This Plan provides a political framework for development of policies, infrastructure, technologies and partnerships for achieving a basic level of health protection in all workplaces throughout the world. The Health Assembly also urged the 193 Member States of WHO to develop national plans and strategies for implementing the Global Plan of Action and to work towards full coverage of all workers with essential interventions and basic services for prevention of occupational diseases and injuries. A large network of 65 collaborating centres provides support to WHO's action on workers' health. The priorities for global action in the coming ten years include policy instruments on workers' health, workplace health protection and promotion, occupational health services, evidence for action and practice, and workers' health in other policies. Thus, WHO action on workers' health contributes to the global health agenda with regards to health security, climate change and Millenium Development Goals.Las acciones de protección y promoción de la salud de los trabajadores se corresponde con

Hanford-worker health study: a status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marks, S.; Tolley, H.D.; Gilbert, E.S.; Petersen, G.R.

1983-02-01

Analysis of the workers' health at the Hanford plant produced no startling changes. Multiple myeloma is the only cancer type that shows a statistically significant trend of mortality with increasing radiation exposure. The study populations will be augmented by the addition of a group of construction workers in the future. Methodologic studies based on this data set are continuing

Mandatory influenza immunization for health care workers--an ethical discussion.

Science.gov (United States)

Steckel, Cynthia M

2007-01-01

Influenza is a serious vaccine-preventable disease affecting 20% of the U.S. population each year. Vaccination of high-risk groups has been called the single most important influenza control measure by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Studies show that vaccination can lead to decreases in flu-related illness and absenteeism among health care workers, as well as fewer acute care outbreaks and reduced patient mortality in long-term care settings. However, to date, voluntary programs have achieved only a 40% vaccination rate among health care workers, causing concern among government and infectious disease organizations. This article addresses the ethical justification for mandating influenza vaccination for health care workers. Health care workers' attitudes toward vaccination are presented, as well as historical and legal perspectives on compulsory measures. The ethical principles of effectiveness, beneficence, necessity, autonomy, justice, and transparency are discussed.

Health and safety concerns os migrant workers: the experience of tunisian workers in modena, Italy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Faïçal Daly

2004-06-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the relatively under-researched field of healthand safety of migrant workers, with special reference to Tunisian construction workers in the city of Modena in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. The empirical material comes from questionnaires and interviews with Tunisian migrants, plus smaller numbers of interviews with employers and trade union representatives in Modena. The paper starts by critically reviewing the scattered literature onthe health and safety of minority workers, most of which refers to the United States and the United Kingdom. The discussion then moves to a consideration of migrant health and safety questions in the contexts of racism, discrimination, social class, working conditions, labour market segmentation and (non- regulation. Specialattention is given to the failed role of trade unions in defending the rights of minority workers, in advanced countries generally and in Italy in particular. A case study is then made of the construction sector in Italy, enriched by personal accounts of the experiences of Tunisian migrant workers in Modena. Employer and tradeunion interviews reveal a lack of concern and ability to tackle the relevant issues. Barriers to health and safety awareness training are outlined. In the conclusion, recommendations are made for policy initiatives in this area.

[Structure of Relationships Formed by Occupational Health Nurses for Co-operating with Managers to Support Workers with Mental Health Concerns].

Science.gov (United States)

Hatanaka, Junko; Takasaki, Masako; Hatanaka, Michiyo

2018-05-31

Occupational health staff and managers play important roles in supporting workers with mental health concerns and mutual co-operation among them is a necessary element. However, when co-operating with other professionals, several problems arise that often make such co-operation a challenge. Effective mutual actions are needed to promote such co-operation, and relationships must be formed for this purpose. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to clarify how occupational health nurses form relationships for facilitating co-operation with managers to provide support to workers with mental health concerns. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 11 occupational health nurses who provide individualized mental health support and who have at least 5 years of experience as occupational health nurses. Analysis of the recorded interviews was performed using a qualitative statistical method (KJ method). Six elements that constitute the formation of relationships were identified. When occupational health nurses form relationships for facilitating co-operation with a manager to provide support to workers, they "form relationships through strategic communication" with them and when co-operation is required, they form a relationship by "acting in a manner that suits the manager," such as his/her character and the situation. To support this relationship, occupational health nurses "provide mental support to the manager" by listening to his/her anxiety or real intention about supporting the subordinate with mental health concerns and provide relief while understanding their burdens during the co-operation. Occupational health nurses even "provide support to the manager in their activities," which assessed the situation at the workplace as the specialist and advised the manager to understand how to concern to the subordinate specifically. In addition, they "indirectly support the manager" which included coordinating with the concerned persons so as to not excessively

Use of health services among vineyard and winery workers in the North Willamette Valley, Oregon.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez-Cevallos, Daniel F; Garside, Leda I; Vazquez, Leticia; Polanco, Kristty

2012-02-01

Although agricultural work is considered one of the most dangerous and physically demanding jobs, the majority of farmworkers remain vulnerable to disease and injury, while use of health services is limited. The present study analyzes the use of health care services among vineyard and winery workers in the North Willamette Valley, Oregon. Data from 513 foreign-born workers collected during the summer of 2009 by ¡Salud! Services, was used to test the influence of relevant predisposing and enabling factors of the Behavioral Model of Health Care Utilization among Vulnerable Populations. The majority of participants were males (87%) with an average age of 33 years. Over half of the workers were either married or living with a partner (54%) and had children living with them (58%). Very few spoke English (5%) and only a third had more than 6 years of formal education. Two-thirds of workers (65%) had a full time job and shared housing (67%). Only one of every five workers (19%) had health insurance. Multivariate analyses show that use of health services in the past 2 years is more likely among females, those who have children, have more than 6 years of education, work full time, are insured, and are currently attending school. This study provides further insight for health care provision initiatives to reduce the many barriers faced by farmworkers and their families.

Programme level implementation of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) use: outcomes and cost of training health workers at lower level health care facilities in Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Kyabayinze, Daniel J; Asiimwe, Caroline; Nakanjako, Damalie; Nabakooza, Jane; Bajabaite, Moses; Strachan, Clare; Tibenderana, James K; Van Geetruyden, Jean Pierre

2012-04-20

The training of health workers in the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) is an important component of a wider strategy to improve parasite-based malaria diagnosis at lower level health care facilities (LLHFs) where microscopy is not readily available for all patients with suspected malaria. This study describes the process and cost of training to attain competence of lower level health workers to perform malaria RDTs in a public health system setting in eastern Uganda. Health workers from 21 health facilities in Uganda were given a one-day central training on the use of RDTs in malaria case management, including practical skills on how to perform read and interpret the test results. Successful trainees subsequently integrated the use of RDTs into their routine care for febrile patients at their LLHFs and transferred their acquired skills to colleagues (cascade training model). A cross-sectional evaluation of the health workers' competence in performing RDTs was conducted six weeks following the training, incorporating observation, in-depth interviews with health workers and the review of health facility records relating to tests offered and antimalarial drug (AMD) prescriptions pre and post training. The direct costs relating to the training processes were also documented. Overall, 135 health workers were trained including 63 (47%) nursing assistants, a group of care providers without formal medical training. All trainees passed the post-training concordance test with ≥ 80% except 12 that required re-training. Six weeks after the one-day training, 51/64 (80%) of the health workers accurately performed the critical steps in performing the RDT. The performance was similar among the 10 (16%) participants who were peer-trained by their trained colleagues. Only 9 (14%) did not draw the appropriate amount of blood using pipette. The average cost of the one-day training was US$ 101 (range $92-$112), with the main cost drivers being trainee travel and per

Community health workers providing government community case management for child survival in sub-Saharan Africa: who are they and what are they expected to do?

Science.gov (United States)

George, Asha; Young, Mark; Nefdt, Rory; Basu, Roshni; Sylla, Mariame; Clarysse, Guy; Bannicq, Marika Yip; de Sousa, Alexandra; Binkin, Nancy; Diaz, Theresa

2012-11-01

We describe community health workers (CHWs) in government community case management (CCM) programs for child survival across sub-Saharan Africa. In sub-Saharan Africa, 91% of 44 United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) offices responded to a cross-sectional survey in 2010. Frequencies describe CHW profiles and activities in government CCM programs (N = 29). Although a few programs paid CHWs a salary or conversely, rewarded CHWs purely on a non-financial basis, most programs combined financial and non-financial incentives and had training for 1 week. Not all programs allowed CHWs to provide zinc, use timers, dispense antibiotics, or use rapid diagnostic tests. Many CHWs undertake health promotion, but fewer CHWs provide soap, water treatment products, indoor residual spraying, or ready-to-use therapeutic foods. For newborn care, very few promote kangaroo care, and they do not provide antibiotics or resuscitation. Even if CHWs are as varied as the health systems in which they work, more work must be done in terms of the design and implementation of the CHW programs for them to realize their potential.

Industrial radiography in the State of Bahia, Brazil: The health protection of workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andrade, Ana Emilia Oliveira de

1997-01-01

This study aimed to identify the Regulatory and Inspection Authority for actions developed by industrial radiography enterprises in the State of Bahia, Brazil, concerning health protection of workers exposed to ionizing radiation in industry. Institutions which legislate about this matter at international, national and State level were identified. These legislations were analysed according to recommendations by the Basic Safety Standards from the Atomic Energy International Agency. Medical Supervision is proposed as a factor to warrant protection to worker's health. This is a service evaluation study, encompassing results, processes and structural components. Emphasis is given to the process component which investigated the adequacy of which is performed by employees and workers. Five enterprises which provide industrial radiography services in the State of Bahia were identified, employing forty workers on a temporary basis. This study also observed: intense workforce, a complete process of contracting out in the sector; inadequate conditions of work organization (long work journey, night work, lack of days-off schedule); inefficiency of medical services responsible by worker's protection concerning radiation specific risks as well as other occupational risks, unrelated to main activity. There is a legal basis for Authorities actions, although it has not been completely implemented. These findings embased the elaboration of a proposal of a Surveillance Program for the Worker Exposed to Industrial Radiation, which includes the setting of safety standards and monitoring of workers exposed to ionization radiation in the occupational environment, accident prevention in this activity and the specialized health care to those affected by radio accidents. (author)

Regulation of Legislation in Utilization of Foreign Health Workers (FHW in Indonesia

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Tri Juni Angkasawati

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Background: One of the impact of AFTA 2010 (Asean Free Trade Area is a broader aspect of global world trade. Trade flows not only occur on public goods but also services, including health workers which now can freely get access to various countries. Objective:The aim of this study was to review policies on the employment of foreign health workers (FHW in order to provide recommendations on specific matters concerning legal protection to people who utilize health services and were treated by FHW. Methods:The method of this study was conducting a policy review with a normative and predictive approaches. This review depicted a clear and deep understanding of the form and implementation of policies related to planning, utilization as well as guidance and supervision of foreign health workers (FHW in Indonesia. Results: This study discovered that there were 7 (seven fundamental policies to regulate FHW that covers licensing, certification and registration, competence, area of activities, time restriction, compensation and sanction. Recommendation: This study recommends a socialization on FHW regulations. In addition, the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of Home Affairs and the immigration office need to enhance their commitment to promote FHW regulations.

Job satisfaction among health care workers in Serbia.

Science.gov (United States)

Korac, Vesna; Vasic, Milena; Krstic, Maja; Markovic, Roberta

2010-01-01

According to literature review there seems to be a general agreement that job satisfaction among doctors is declining. This study's objective was to identify job satisfaction levels and their causes among health care workers, employed at the public health institutions. A job satisfaction survey of health care workers was therefore carried out in 197 public health centers in the Republic of Serbia, 157 primary health care centers and 40 general hospitals, in 2008. A satisfaction questionnaire, containing 24 items was used to investigate job satisfaction. Respondents (23.259), working in primary health care, indicated an average job satisfaction level of 3.08 +/- 0.67 on a 5-point scale. Respondents (11.302), working in general hospitals, indicated a lower average job satisfaction level of 2.96 +/- 0.63. The reported level of satisfaction was the highest for their opportunities to use their abilities, cooperation with colleagues and fellow workers, and freedom to choose their own methods of work. Doctors, working in primary health care centers, reported higher level of job satisfaction than hospital doctors. Overall, job satisfaction of doctors and nurses is relatively low. Increased pay rate and more adequate equipment, as well as possibilities for education and career improvement, would enhance their job satisfaction.

Utilisation of sexual health services by female sex workers in Nepal

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van Teijlingen Edwin R

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Nepal Demographic Health Survey (NDHS in 2006 showed that more than half (56% of the women with sexually transmitted infections (STIs, including HIV, in Nepal sought sexual health services. There is no such data for female sex workers (FSWs and the limited studies on this group suggest they do not even use routine health services. This study explores FSWs use of sexual health services and the factors associated with their use and non-use of services. Methods This study aimed to explore the factors associated with utilisation of sexual health services by FSWs in the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal, and it used a mixed-method approach consisting of an interviewer administered questionnaire-based survey and in-depth interviews. Results The questionnaire survey, completed with 425 FSWs, showed that 90% FSWs self-reported sickness, and (30.8% reported symptoms of STIs. A quarter (25% of those reporting STIs had never visited any health facilities especially for sexual health services preferring to use non-governmental clinics (72%, private clinics (50%, hospital (27% and health centres (13%. Multiple regression analysis showed that separated, married and street- based FSWs were more likely to seek health services from the clinics or hospitals. In- depth interviews with 15 FSWs revealed that FSWs perceived that personal, structural and socio-cultural barriers, such as inappropriate clinic opening hours, discrimination, the judgemental attitude of the service providers, lack of confidentiality, fear of public exposure, and higher fees for the services as barriers to their access and utilisation of sexual health services. Conclusion FSWs have limited access to information and to health services, and operate under personal, structural and socio-cultural constraints. The 'education' to change individual behaviour, health worker and community perceptions, as well as the training of the health workers, is necessary.

Incentives for retaining and motivating health workers in Pacific and Asian countries

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Tulloch Jim

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract This paper was initiated by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID after identifying the need for an in-depth synthesis and analysis of available literature and information on incentives for retaining health workers in the Asia-Pacific region. The objectives of this paper are to: 1. Highlight the situation of health workers in Pacific and Asian countries to gain a better understanding of the contributing factors to health worker motivation, dissatisfaction and migration. 2. Examine the regional and global evidence on initiatives to retain a competent and motivated health workforce, especially in rural and remote areas. 3. Suggest ways to address the shortages of health workers in Pacific and Asian countries by using incentives. The review draws on literature and information gathered through a targeted search of websites and databases. Additional reports were gathered through AusAID country offices, UN agencies, and non-government organizations. The severe shortage of health workers in Pacific and Asian countries is a critical issue that must be addressed through policy, planning and implementation of innovative strategies – such as incentives – for retaining and motivating health workers. While economic factors play a significant role in the decisions of workers to remain in the health sector, evidence demonstrates that they are not the only factors. Research findings from the Asia-Pacific region indicate that salaries and benefits, together with working conditions, supervision and management, and education and training opportunities are important. The literature highlights the importance of packaging financial and non-financial incentives. Each country facing shortages of health workers needs to identify the underlying reasons for the shortages, determine what motivates health workers to remain in the health sector, and evaluate the incentives required for maintaining a competent and motivated health workforce

Health Care Waste Segregation Behavior among Health Workers in Uganda: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior.

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Akulume, Martha; Kiwanuka, Suzanne N

2016-01-01

Objective . The goal of this study was to assess the appropriateness of the theory of planned behavior in predicting health care waste segregation behaviors and to examine the factors that influence waste segregation behaviors. Methodology . One hundred and sixty-three health workers completed a self-administered questionnaire in a cross-sectional survey that examined the theory of planned behavior constructs (attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intention) and external variables (sociodemographic factors, personal characteristics, organizational characteristics, professional characteristics, and moral obligation). Results . For their most recent client 21.5% of the health workers reported that they most definitely segregated health care waste while 5.5% did not segregate. All the theory of planned behavior constructs were significant predictors of health workers' segregation behavior, but intention emerged as the strongest and most significant ( r = 0.524, P theory of planned behavior model explained 52.5% of the variance in health workers' segregation behavior. When external variables were added, the new model explained 66.7% of the variance in behavior. Conclusion . Generally, health workers' health care waste segregation behavior was high. The theory of planned behavior significantly predicted health workers' health care waste segregation behaviors.

Educational mismatch and health status among foreign-born workers in Sweden.

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Dunlavy, A C; Garcy, A M; Rostila, M

2016-04-01

Foreign-born workers have been shown to experience poorer working conditions than native-born workers. Yet relationships between health and educational mismatch have been largely overlooked among foreign-born workers. This study uses objective and self-reported measures of educational mismatch to compare the prevalence of educational mismatch among native (n = 2359) and foreign-born (n = 1789) workers in Sweden and to examine associations between educational mismatch and poor self-rated health. Findings from weighted multivariate logistic regression which controlled for social position and individual-level demographic characteristics suggested that over-educated foreign-born workers had greater odds ratios for poor-self rated health compared to native-born matched workers. This association was particularly evident among men (OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.04-4.39) and women (OR = 2.13, 95% CI: 1.12-4.03) from countries outside of Western Europe, North America, and Australia/New Zealand. Associations between under-education and poor-self rated health were also found among women from countries outside of Western Europe, North America, and Australia/New Zealand (OR = 2.02, 95% CI: 1.27-3.18). These findings suggest that educational mismatch may be an important work-related social determinant of health among foreign-born workers. Future studies are needed to examine the effects of long-term versus short-term states of educational mismatch on health and to study relationships over time. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health survey of radiation workers. Results of questionnaire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morikawa, Kaoru; Aoyama, Takashi; Kawagoe, Yasumitsu; Sunayashiki, Tadashi; Tanaka, Kiyoshi; Nishitani, Motohiro; Yoshinaga, Nobuharu

1998-01-01

The Japanese Society of Radiological Technology asked radiation workers about the radiation doses and the state of their health as well as family. The reports by the Health and Welfare Ministry were referenced to compare radiation workers with others. The questionnaire was sent to about 4,000 members, and returned from 2,479. The survey showed that 684 persons (27.6%) felt health anxiety, 455 persons (18.4%) had medical check for recent one year, and 1,645 persons (66.4%) had anamnesis. Radiation doses for one year and cumulated doses varied according to engaging duration. (K.H.)

The Relationship Between Sociodemographic Characteristics, Work Conditions, and Level of "Mobbing" of Health Workers in Primary Health Care.

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Picakciefe, Metin; Acar, Gulcihan; Colak, Zehra; Kilic, Ibrahim

2015-06-19

Mobbing is a type of violence which occurs in workplaces and is classified under the community violence subgroup of interpersonal violence. The aim of this study is to examine health care workers who work in primary health care in the city of Mugla and to determine whether there is a relationship between sociodemographic characteristics, work conditions, and their level of mobbing. A cross-sectional analysis has been conducted in which 130 primary health care workers were selected. Of the 130, 119 health workers participated, yielding a response rate of 91.5%; 83.2% of health workers are female, 42.9% are midwives, 27.7% are nurses, and 14.3% are doctors. In all, 31.1% of health workers have faced with "mobbing" in the last 1 year, and the frequency of experiencing "mobbing" of those 48.6% of them is 1 to 3 times per year. A total of 70.3% of those who apply "mobbing" are senior health workers, and 91.9% are female. The frequency of encountering with "mobbing" was found significantly in married health workers, in those 16 years and above according to examined total working time, in those who have psychosocial reactions, and in those who have counterproductive behaviors. It has been discovered that primary health care workers have high prevalence of "mobbing" exposure. To avoid "mobbing" at workplace, authorities and responsibilities of all employees have to be clearly determined. © The Author(s) 2015.

HEALTH WORKER AND FIBROMYALGIA: relationship between pain, and physical activity

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Andréa Cristina Costa

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The objective of the present article is to address the concept of fibromyalgie, as well as the painful symptomatology and physical exercise as a therapeutic manner, stressing the importance of this alteration in the field of workers health. It is in fact a revision, carried out through consultations of scientific articles selected in periodicals indexed at the basis of the Scientific Electronic Library Online – SciELO and PubMed. In spite of the absence of scientific evidences that point to physical efforts as factors that cause fibromyalgie, there are some studies relating the repetitive microtrauma stemming from work as ethiological agent. It is characterized as a syndrome whose main symptom is pain, which is utilized as a manner of evaluation and pathology follow-up, through such tools as scales. With regard to the treatment, physical exercises are able to minimize the algie and other symptoms. Finally, all related research works pursue correct and deep understanding of this pathology, so as to define more appropriate treatments, whilst keeping the person’s position as worker, under the assistance of specialized workers health services, thus providing quality of life.

Work, gender roles, and health: neglected mental health issues among female workers in the ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh

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Akhter S

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Sadika Akhter,1,2 Shannon Rutherford,1 Feroza Akhter Kumkum,2 David Bromwich,1 Iqbal Anwar,2 Aminur Rahman,2 Cordia Chu1 1Centre for Environment and Population Health, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; 2International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh Background: Traditionally, women in Bangladesh stayed at home in their role as daughter, wife, or mother. In the 1980s, economic reforms created a job market for poor, uneducated rural women in the ready-made garment industry, mostly located in urban areas. This increased participation in paid work has changed the gender roles of these women. Women’s earnings support their family, but they are also separated from their children, with impacts on their mental health and well-being. This study explores the lived experience of women in Bangladesh working in the ready-made garment industry as they strive to be mothers and family providers, often in high-stress conditions.Methods: The study was conducted in two industrial areas of Dhaka over 8 months. Data collection included a literature review, 20 in-depth interviews with married female garment workers, and 14 key-informant interviews with officials from the Ministry of Labour and Employment, health-service providers within the garment factories, factory managers, and representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. The data collected were analyzed thematically.Results: Poverty was a key motivating factor for female migrant workers to move from rural areas. Their children stay in their village with their grandparents, because of their mothers’ work conditions and the lack of childcare. The women reported stress, anxiety, restlessness, and thoughts of suicide, due to the double burden of work and separation from their children and family support. Further, they cannot easily access government hospital services due to their long work hours, and the limited medical

Meeting community health worker needs for maternal health care service delivery using appropriate mobile technologies in Ethiopia.

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Alex Little

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Mobile health applications are complex interventions that essentially require changes to the behavior of health care professionals who will use them and changes to systems or processes in delivery of care. Our aim has been to meet the technical needs of Health Extension Workers (HEWs and midwives for maternal health using appropriate mobile technologies tools. METHODS: We have developed and evaluated a set of appropriate smartphone health applications using open source components, including a local language adapted data collection tool, health worker and manager user-friendly dashboard analytics and maternal-newborn protocols. This is an eighteen month follow-up of an ongoing observational research study in the northern of Ethiopia involving two districts, twenty HEWs, and twelve midwives. RESULTS: Most health workers rapidly learned how to use and became comfortable with the touch screen devices so only limited technical support was needed. Unrestricted use of smartphones generated a strong sense of ownership and empowerment among the health workers. Ownership of the phones was a strong motivator for the health workers, who recognised the value and usefulness of the devices, so took care to look after them. A low level of smartphones breakage (8.3%,3 from 36 and loss (2.7% were reported. Each health worker made an average of 160 mins of voice calls and downloaded 27Mb of data per month, however, we found very low usage of short message service (less than 3 per month. CONCLUSIONS: Although it is too early to show a direct link between mobile technologies and health outcomes, mobile technologies allow health managers to more quickly and reliably have access to data which can help identify where there issues in the service delivery. Achieving a strong sense of ownership and empowerment among health workers is a prerequisite for a successful introduction of any mobile health program.

Attitudes of Primary Care Health Workers Towards Mental Health Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study in Osun State, Nigeria.

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Mosaku, Kolawole S; Wallymahmed, Akhtar H

2017-02-01

World Health Organization (WHO) recommends integration of mental health services into primary health services; however attitude of primary health care workers is one barrier to this. A cross sectional survey using the Community Attitudes towards Mental Illness (CAMI) was done. One hundred and twenty primary care workers were randomly selected from three local government areas. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in analyses. The results showed that most primary health care workers hold a benevolent (mean = 2.47, SD = 0.52) attitude towards the mentally ill. Workers with 10 years or more experience tend to have less authoritarian (t = 3.19, p = 0.01) and less social restrictive (t = 3.90, p = 0.01) attitudes towards the mentally ill. There were no significant differences in attitude by gender, marital status, or designation of health care workers. The study showed that primary care workers have attitudes similar to that seen in the general population.

The role of community health workers in supporting South Africa's ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Community health workers deployed around South Africa's primary health care clinics, supply indispensable support for the world's largest HIV/AIDS treatment programme. Interviews with these workers illuminated the contribution they make to anti-retroviral treatment (ART) of HIV/AIDS patients and the motivations that ...

Effects of office innovation on office workers' health and performance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meijer, Eline M.; Frings-Dresen, Monique H. W.; Sluiter, Judith K.

2009-01-01

The implementation of an innovative office concept (e.g. open-plan, flexible workplaces and a paperless office concept) on health and productivity among office workers was evaluated with questionnaires of 138 workers at baseline and 6 and 15 months afterwards. Work-related fatigue, general health,

Health worker perceptions of integrating mobile phones into community case management of malaria in Saraya, Senegal.

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Blanas, Demetri A; Ndiaye, Youssoupha; MacFarlane, Matthew; Manga, Isaac; Siddiqui, Ammar; Velez, Olivia; Kanter, Andrew S; Nichols, Kim; Hennig, Nils

2015-05-01

Although community case management of malaria increases access to life-saving care in isolated settings, it contends with many logistical challenges. Mobile phone health information technology may present an opportunity to address a number of these barriers. Using the wireless adaptation of the technology acceptance model, this study assessed availability, ease of use, usefulness, and job relevance of mobile phones by health workers in Saraya, Senegal. This study conducted seven key informant interviews with government health workers, and three focus groups and 76 surveys with lay health workers. Principal findings included that mobile phones are already widely available and used, and that participants valued using phones to address training, stock management, programme reporting, and transportation challenges. By documenting widespread use of mobile phones and health worker perceptions of their most useful applications, this paper provides a framework for their integration into the community case management of malaria programme in Saraya, Senegal. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Work motivation and job satisfaction of health workers in urban and rural areas.

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Grujičić, Maja; Jovičić-Bata, Jelena; Rađen, Slavica; Novaković, Budimka; Šipetić-Grujičić, Sandra

2016-08-01

Motivated and job satisfied health professionals represent a basis of success of modern health institutions. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there was a difference in work motivation and job satisfaction between health workers in urban and rural areas in the region of Central Serbia. The study included 396 health professionals from urban setting, and 436 from a rural area, employed in four randomly selected health facilities. An anonymous questionnaire was used for data gathering. Statistical analysis was performed using χ2, Student t-test, Spearman's correlation coefficient, and logistic regression analysis. Urban health professionals were significantly more motivated and job satisfied than respondents from rural area. In relation to work motivation factors and job satisfaction of health professionals in urban and rural areas, there were no significant differences in working conditions and current equipment, and in terms of job satisfaction there were no significant differences in relation to income either. In order to increase the level of work motivation and job satisfaction of health workers in rural areas, apart from better income, they should get more assistance and support from their supervisors, and awards for good job performance; interpersonal relationships, promotion and advancement opportunities, managerial performance and cooperation at work should be improved; employment security should be provided, as well as more independence at work, with professional supervision of health workers.

Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Symptoms among Dental Health Workers, Southern Thailand

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Somsiri Decharat

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives. The objective of this study was to describe the socioeconomic situation of dental health work and work characteristics and to evaluate the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among dental health workers. Material and Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 124 dental health workers and 124 persons in the reference group, matched to dental health workers by gender, were recruited from the workers who worked at the same 17 community hospitals in Nakhon Si Thammarat province, Thailand. Information was collected by using questionnaire. Data analysis comprised descriptive and analytical components. Results and Discussion. 75.8% were female and 24.2% were male dental health workers. 91.9% of subjects had worked >5 years. Most subjects worked for >8 hours per day and worked >6 days per week, at 63.7% and 53.2%, respectively. 100% of subjects worked in public institutions, and 68% also worked in both public and private institutions. Most subjects (52.4% did not exercise. Daily activity, gender, duration of work, hours worked per day, days worked per week, and physical activity were significantly associated with musculoskeletal symptoms at <0.001. Conclusion. The prevention and reduction of MSDs among dentists should include improving their education in dental ergonomics.

Needs and challenges of lay community health workers in a palliative care environment for orphans and vulnerable children

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Bonita Bernice Visagie

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The escalation of HIV/AIDS infections in the last decade has increased the need for palliative care community organizations to care for orphans and vulnerable children, who are in dire need of support. Many of these organizations depend on the services of lay community health workers to provide constant care to those in need of it in their local communities. The focus of this study is to explore the role of lay health workers in a community organization located in rural Bronkhorstspruit, Gauteng Province of South Africa. That provides palliative care for orphans and vulnerable children diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Their roles were analysed critically through a job-demands and job-resources theoretical framework. Methods: A descriptive phenomenological case study design was employed to collect data through twenty five individual interviews, two separate focus groups consisting of ten participants in one group and eleven participants in the other group, observations and document analysis. Data were processed through a rigorous thematic analysis. Results: The findings pointed out specific knowledge and skills these lay community health workers needed in order to be satisfied with, and successful in, their administration of palliative care to orphans and vulnerable children. Participants identified the following organizational challenges that were deemed to be impacting negatively on their work experiences: the lack of career pathing processes; sufficient career guidance; and inadequate employment processes, such as staff retention, succession planning, and promotion. Conclusion: Through the findings, a framework for enhancing the work experiences of the lay community health workers was developed. The uniqueness of this framework is that the focus is on improving the work lives of the lay community health workers, who have serious skills-resourcing needs. There were specific concrete strategies that the organization could adopt to support

Health protection of radiation workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Norwood, W.D.

1975-01-01

Essential information on the health protection of radiation workers which has accumulated since the advent of nuclear fission thirty years ago is presented in simple terms. Basic facts on ionizing radiation, its measurement, and dosimetry are presented. Acute and chronic somatic and genetic effects are discussed with emphasis on prevention. Radiation protection standards and regulations are outlined, and methods for maintaining these standards are described. Diagnosis and treatment of radiation injury from external radiation and/or internally deposited radionuclides is considered generally as well as specifically for each radioisotope. The medical supervision of radiation workers, radiation accidents, atomic power plants, and medicolegal problems is also covered. (853 references) (U.S.)

The health information seeking behaviour and needs of community health workers in Chandigarh in Northern India.

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Raj, Sonika; Sharma, Vijay Lakshmi; Singh, Amarjeet; Goel, Sonu

2015-06-01

This article represents two-firsts for the feature--it is the first to report on a study outside the UK and the first to examine the health information needs of community health workers. Sonika Raj is pursuing PhD at the Centre for Public Health, Panjab University, Chandigarh, in India and she conducted her research in Chandigarh. The article outlines the important role that health workers at community level play in determining health outcomes in the developing world, including Chandigarh. It demonstrates that while those workers recognise their information needs, there are many issues affecting their ability to access health information effectively, not least their limited access to appropriate technology and training. AM. © 2015 Health Libraries Group.

Occupational health of self-employed women workers. Experiences from community based studies of the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA).

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Chatterjee, M

1993-02-01

The Self-Employed Workers' Association (SEWA) has conducted 4 longitudinal, community-based studies to survey the occupational health of self-employed women in Ahmedabad and Indore, India. It included the workers in all stages of research. SEWA staff examined women in readymade garment, bidi, agarbatti, and masala fields. Since SEWA did not use control groups, they could not establish cause and effect relationships. Masala workers had the highest illiteracy rate (66%). At least 50% of all workers (89% of readymade garment workers) worked 8-12 hours/day. Daily wages of most workers did not exceed Rs.10, confirming their low poverty level. The most common occupational health problem while working was pain in the limbs for bidi (63%) and readymade garment workers (80%). They also experienced back pain and headaches. After work, back pain was common among agarbatti (73%) and masala (39%) workers. Masala workers also suffered from blisters and calluses (51%) and burning sensation (45%), particularly in their hands. Gynecological problems (e.g., early periods, white discharge, and burning sensation while urinating) and abdominal pain were common in all 4 groups. These results demonstrated a need for further research on occupational health and gynecological diseases; health facilities to adjust services to meet self-employed workers needs; provision of safe and subsidized tools, safety equipment, benefits (e.g., sick leave and child care), and health insurance; and health education. SEWA recommends that self-employed workers receive identity cards, the government enforce minimum wage laws and regulate working hours, and workers are provided basic amenities (e.g., potable water and sanitation).

The impact of heatwaves on workers' health and safety in Adelaide, South Australia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xiang, Jianjun; Bi, Peng, E-mail: peng.bi@adelaide.edu.au; Pisaniello, Dino; Hansen, Alana

2014-08-15

This study aims to investigate the impact of heatwaves on worker's health and safety; to identify workers at higher risk of prevalent illnesses and injuries due to heatwaves; and to provide evidence for policy-makers and service providers. South Australian workers' compensation claims data for 2001–2010 were transformed into time series format, merged with meteorological data and analysed using generalized estimating equation (GEE) models. For total injury claims there was no significant difference detected between heatwave and non-heatwave periods. However, for outdoor industries, daily claims increased significantly by 6.2% during heatwaves. Over-represented in hot weather were male labourers and tradespersons aged ≥55 years, and those employed in ‘agriculture, forestry and fishing’ and ‘electricity, gas and water’. Occupational burns, wounds, lacerations, and amputations as well as heat illnesses were significantly associated with heatwaves. Similarly, moving objects, contact with chemicals, and injuries related to environmental factors increased significantly during heatwaves, especially among middle-aged and older male workers. With the predicted increase of extremely hot weather, there is a need for relevant adaptation and prevention measures at both practice and policy levels for vulnerable work groups. - Highlights: • We investigate the impacts of heatwaves on workers' health and safety. • We identify workers at higher risk of illnesses and injuries during heatwaves. • The differences between two heatwave definitions on effect estimates are compared. • Daily injury claims for outdoor industries increased by 6.2% during heatwaves. • Relevant heat prevention measures are required for vulnerable workers.

Turnover among Community Mental Health Workers in Ohio.

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Bukach, Ashley M; Ejaz, Farida K; Dawson, Nicole; Gitter, Robert J

2017-01-01

This study examined turnover of community mental health workers in 42 randomly selected mental health agencies in Ohio. The turnover rate in 2011 was 26 %. A regression analysis indicated that agencies with lower turnover offered higher maximum pay and were smaller in size, while those offering career advancement opportunities, such as career ladder programs, had higher turnover. The findings suggest that improving wages for workers is likely to reduce turnover. It is also possible that smaller agencies have lower turnover due to stronger relationships with workers and/or more successful hiring practices. Furthermore, turnover that occurs as a result of career advancement could have positive effects and should be examined separate from other types of turnover in the future.

The Latino Migrant Worker HIV Prevention Program: building a community partnership through a community health worker training program.

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez, Jesús; Silva-Suarez, Georgina; Serna, Claudia A; De La Rosa, Mario

2012-01-01

There is limited information on the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on Latino migrant workers (LMWs), although available data indicate that this community is being disproportionally affected. The need for prevention programs that address the specific needs of LMWs is becoming well recognized. HIV prevention interventions that train and employ community health workers are a culturally appropriate way to address the issues of community trust and capacity building in this community. This article describes the Latino Migrant Worker HIV Prevention Program and its efforts to train and engage community health workers in the prevention of HIV among LMWs in South Florida.

Early implementation of WHO recommendations for the retention of health workers in remote and rural areas.

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Buchan, James; Couper, Ian D; Tangcharoensathien, Viroj; Thepannya, Khampasong; Jaskiewicz, Wanda; Perfilieva, Galina; Dolea, Carmen

2013-11-01

The maldistribution of health workers between urban and rural areas is a policy concern in virtually all countries. It prevents equitable access to health services, can contribute to increased health-care costs and underutilization of health professional skills in urban areas, and is a barrier to universal health coverage. To address this long-standing concern, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued global recommendations to improve the rural recruitment and retention of the health workforce. This paper presents experiences with local and regional adaptation and adoption of WHO recommendations. It highlights challenges and lessons learnt in implementation in two countries - the Lao People's Democratic Republic and South Africa - and provides a broader perspective in two regions - Asia and Europe. At country level, the use of the recommendations facilitated a more structured and focused policy dialogue, which resulted in the development and adoption of more relevant and evidence-based policies. At regional level, the recommendations sparked a more sustained effort for cross-country policy assessment and joint learning. There is a need for impact assessment and evaluation that focus on the links between the rural availability of health workers and universal health coverage. The effects of any health-financing reforms on incentive structures for health workers will also have to be assessed if the central role of more equitably distributed health workers in achieving universal health coverage is to be supported.

The health care system for female workers and its current status in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Nohara, M; Kagawa, J

2000-11-01

In this paper we describe female workers' health care, the women's and maternal protection system within the Japanese legal system, the current status of female workers in Japan, and problems regarding methods of advancing health care and the women's or maternal protection system. Motherhood is respected in the workplace in Japan, and in order to provide an environment in which women can work and still bear and rear children with a sense of security, laws concerning maternal protection of female workers, and revisions in terms of the system have been made, and a new system has been in effect since the fiscal year of 1998. Nevertheless, gender discrimination against women and the disparagement of women, rooted in gender role stereotypes concerning the division of labor, remain firmly planted in the social environment and in long-established custom.

Recruitment and retention of mental health workers in Ghana.

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Helen Jack

Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: The lack of trained mental health workers is a primary contributor to the mental health treatment gap worldwide. Despite the great need to recruit and retain mental health workers in low-income countries, little is known about how these workers perceive their jobs and what drives them to work in mental health care. Using qualitative interviews, we aimed to explore factors motivating mental health workers in order to inform interventions to increase recruitment and retention. METHODS: We conducted 28 in-depth, open-ended interviews with staff in Ghana's three public psychiatric hospitals. We used the snowballing method to recruit participants and the constant comparative method for qualitative data analysis, with multiple members of the research team participating in data coding to enhance the validity and reliability of the analysis. The use of qualitative methods allowed us to understand the range and depth of motivating and demotivating factors. RESULTS: Respondents described many factors that influenced their choice to enter and remain in mental health care. Motivating factors included 1 desire to help patients who are vulnerable and in need, 2 positive day-to-day interactions with patients, 3 intellectual or academic interest in psychiatry or behavior, and 4 good relationships with colleagues. Demotivating factors included 1 lack of resources at the hospital, 2 a rigid supervisory hierarchy, 3 lack of positive or negative feedback on work performance, and 4 few opportunities for career advancement within mental health. CONCLUSIONS: Because many of the factors are related to relationships, these findings suggest that strengthening the interpersonal and team dynamics may be a critical and relatively low cost way to increase worker motivation. The data also allowed us to highlight key areas for resource allocation to improve both recruitment and retention, including risk pay, adequate tools for patient care, improved hospital work

Worker Preferences for a Mental Health App Within Male-Dominated Industries: Participatory Study.

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Peters, Dorian; Deady, Mark; Glozier, Nick; Harvey, Samuel; Calvo, Rafael A

2018-04-25

Men are less likely to seek help for mental health problems, possibly because of stigma imposed by cultural masculine norms. These tendencies may be amplified within male-dominated workplaces such as the emergency services or transport industries. Mobile apps present a promising way to provide access to mental health support. However, little is known about the kinds of mental health technologies men would be willing to engage with, and no app can be effective if the intended users do not engage with it. The goal of this participatory user research study was to explore the perceptions, preferences, and ideas of workers in male-dominated workplaces to define requirements for a mental health app that would be engaging and effective at improving psychological well-being. Workers from male-dominated workplaces in rural, suburban, and urban locations took part in an exploratory qualitative study involving participatory workshops designed to elicit their perspectives and preferences for mental health support and the design of an app for mental health. Participants generated a number of artifacts (including draft screen designs and promotional material) designed to reify their perceptions, tacit knowledge, and ideas. A total of 60 workers aged between 26 and 65 years, 92% (55/60) male, from male-dominated workplaces in rural (16/60, 27%), suburban (14/60, 23%), and urban (30/60, 50%) locations participated in one of the 6 workshops, resulting in 49 unique feature ideas and 81 participant-generated artifacts. Thematic analysis resulted in a set of feature, language, and style preferences, as well as characteristics considered important by participants for a mental health app. The term "mental health" was highly stigmatized and disliked by participants. Tools including a mood tracker, self-assessment, and mood-fix tool were highly valued, and app characteristics such as brevity of interactions, minimal on-screen text, and a solutions-oriented approach were considered

Inverse roles of emotional labour on health and job satisfaction among long-term care workers in Japan.

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Tsukamoto, Erika; Abe, Takeru; Ono, Michikazu

2015-01-01

Emotional labour increases among long-term care workers because providing care and services to impaired elders causes conflicting interpersonal emotions. Thus, we investigated the associations between emotional labour, general health and job satisfaction among long-term care workers. We conducted a cross-sectional study among 132 established, private day care centres in Tokyo using a mail survey. The outcome variables included two health-related variables and four job satisfaction variables: physical and psychological health, satisfaction with wages, interpersonal relationships, work environment and job satisfaction. We performed multiple regression analyses to identify significant factors. Directors from 36 facilities agreed to participate. A total of 123 responses from long-term care workers were analysed. Greater emotional dissonance was associated with better physical and psychological health and worse work environment satisfaction (partial regression coefficient: -2.93, p = .0389; -3.32, p = .0299; -1.92, p = .0314, respectively). Fewer negative emotions were associated with more job satisfaction (partial regression coefficient: -1.87, p = .0163). We found that emotional labour was significantly inversely associated with health and job satisfaction. Our findings indicated that the emotional labour of long-term care workers has a negative and positive influence on health and workplace satisfaction, and suggests that care quality and stable employment among long-term care workers might affect their emotional labour. Therefore, we think a programme to support emotional labour among long-term care workers in an organized manner and a self-care programme to educate workers regarding emotional labour would be beneficial.

Programme level implementation of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs use: outcomes and cost of training health workers at lower level health care facilities in Uganda

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Kyabayinze Daniel J

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The training of health workers in the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs is an important component of a wider strategy to improve parasite-based malaria diagnosis at lower level health care facilities (LLHFs where microscopy is not readily available for all patients with suspected malaria. This study describes the process and cost of training to attain competence of lower level health workers to perform malaria RDTs in a public health system setting in eastern Uganda. Methods Health workers from 21 health facilities in Uganda were given a one-day central training on the use of RDTs in malaria case management, including practical skills on how to perform read and interpret the test results. Successful trainees subsequently integrated the use of RDTs into their routine care for febrile patients at their LLHFs and transferred their acquired skills to colleagues (cascade training model. A cross-sectional evaluation of the health workers’ competence in performing RDTs was conducted six weeks following the training, incorporating observation, in-depth interviews with health workers and the review of health facility records relating to tests offered and antimalarial drug (AMD prescriptions pre and post training. The direct costs relating to the training processes were also documented. Results Overall, 135 health workers were trained including 63 (47% nursing assistants, a group of care providers without formal medical training. All trainees passed the post-training concordance test with ≥ 80% except 12 that required re-training. Six weeks after the one-day training, 51/64 (80% of the health workers accurately performed the critical steps in performing the RDT. The performance was similar among the 10 (16% participants who were peer-trained by their trained colleagues. Only 9 (14% did not draw the appropriate amount of blood using pipette. The average cost of the one-day training was US$ 101 (range $92-$112, with the

Knowledge and Perceptions Regarding Community-Acquired Staphylococcal Infections Among Health Care Workers in Hawai‘i

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Katz, Alan; Hurwitz, Eric; Tice, Alan

2013-01-01

Introduction Since the early 1990s, national rates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections have increased dramatically. Initially identified in health care settings, community-acquired MRSA is now a major public health concern. With Hawai‘i's strikingly high incidence and prevalence of MRSA infections, a high level of knowledge and awareness among health care workers is essential to successfully controlling this evolving epidemic. Methods Health care and related workers were surveyed to assess their knowledge and perceptions about staphylococcal and MRSA infections. Knowledge was estimated by demonstrated ability to correctly identify risk factors including diabetes, obesity, pets, and seawater exposure as well as understanding the seriousness of antibiotic resistance. Perceptions were estimated by demonstrated awareness of the severity and elevated incidence and prevalence of S. aureus and MRSA infections. Results This study identified that occupation (advance clinical practitioner, nurse, public health professional, athletic trainers, and non-medical workers) as well as work location (community vs hospital) influence knowledge and perceptions regarding the epidemiology, severity, and risk factors of S. aureus and MRSA infections. Additionally, despite a well-documented global crisis with antibiotic resistance, Hawai‘i's community health care workers were less inclined to correctly identify the threat of antibiotic resistance as compared to their hospital-based colleagues. Conclusion Trends were observed in knowledge and perceptions with level of medical education. Differences were also noted according to work location. Overall, health care and related workers in the community were less likely to understand basic principles associated with S. aureus infections as well as misperceive this imminent threat. These findings provide compelling evidence for focused educational interventions targeting community health care and related workers

Contributing to the wellbeing of primary health care workers in PNG.

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Davy, Carol

2007-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how organisational frames of reference, which are neither not appropriately communicated nor supported, affect the wellbeing of workers. A review of the literature is used to develop a new model linking ambiguous frames of reference with reduced levels of workers' wellbeing. This is then tested using data collected in a study involving primary health care workers in Papua New Guinea (PNG). This paper finds that, for these particular workers, the model linking ambiguous frames of reference and reduced worker wellbeing is valid. The paper shows that there is a need for further research into a variety of areas including the importance of frames of reference to worker wellbeing, the significance of reference groups to organisational frames of reference and the consequences of reduced worker wellbeing in developing countries. In this paper, recommendations for changes to current PNG primary health care management practices, including ensuring the support for as well as communicating the organisational frame of reference, are discussed. The paper shows that the experiences of these particular primary health care workers not only demonstrates the validity of the new model but also brings a unique perspective to the field of worker wellbeing, which up until now has been dominated by research conducted in western countries.

Factors affecting job motivation among health workers: a study from Iran.

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Daneshkohan, Abbas; Zarei, Ehsan; Mansouri, Tahere; Maajani, Khadije; Ghasemi, Mehri Siyahat; Rezaeian, Mohsen

2014-11-26

Human resources are the most vital resource of any organizations which determine how other resources are used to accomplish organizational goals. This research aimed to identity factors affecting health workers' motivation in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences (SBUMS). This is a cross-sectional survey conducted with participation of 212 health workers of Tehran health centers in November and December 2011. The data collection tool was a researcher-developed questionnaire that included 17 motivating factors and 6 demotivating factors and 8 questions to assess the current status of some factors. Validity and reliability of the tool were confirmed. Data were analyzed with descriptive and analytical statistical tests. The main motivating factors for health workers were good management, supervisors and managers' support and good working relationship with colleagues. On the other hand, unfair treatment, poor management and lack of appreciation were the main demotivating factors. Furthermore, 47.2% of health workers believed that existing schemes for supervision were unhelpful in improving their performance. Strengthening management capacities in health services can increase job motivation and improve health workers' performance. The findings suggests that special attention should be paid to some aspects such as management competencies, social support in the workplace, treating employees fairly and performance management practices, especially supervision and performance appraisal.

Association between health worker motivation and healthcare quality efforts in Ghana.

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Alhassan, Robert Kaba; Spieker, Nicole; van Ostenberg, Paul; Ogink, Alice; Nketiah-Amponsah, Edward; de Wit, Tobias F Rinke

2013-08-14

Ghana is one of the sub-Saharan African countries making significant progress towards universal access to quality healthcare. However, it remains a challenge to attain the 2015 targets for the health related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) partly due to health sector human resource challenges including low staff motivation. This paper addresses indicators of health worker motivation and assesses associations with quality care and patient safety in Ghana. The aim is to identify interventions at the health worker level that contribute to quality improvement in healthcare facilities. The study is a baseline survey of health workers (n = 324) in 64 primary healthcare facilities in two regions in Ghana. Data collection involved quality care assessment using the SafeCare Essentials tool, the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) accreditation data and structured staff interviews on workplace motivating factors. The Spearman correlation test was conducted to test the hypothesis that the level of health worker motivation is associated with level of effort by primary healthcare facilities to improve quality care and patient safety. The quality care situation in health facilities was generally low, as determined by the SafeCare Essentials tool and NHIA data. The majority of facilities assessed did not have documented evidence of processes for continuous quality improvement and patient safety. Overall, staff motivation appeared low although workers in private facilities perceived better working conditions than workers in public facilities (P motivation interventions should be integrated into quality improvement strategies especially in government-owned healthcare facilities where working conditions are perceived to be the worst.

Assessment of burnout among health workers and bankers in Aba ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Aim: To determine the prevalence of burnout among health workers and bankers in Aba South Local Government Area in Abia State. Materials and Methods: A cross.sectional, descriptive study was carried out in 2013 among health workers and bankers in Aba metropolis. By multistage sampling method, proportionate ...

Assessing the Impact of Community Engagement Interventions on Health Worker Motivation and Experiences with Clients in Primary Health Facilities in Ghana: A Randomized Cluster Trial.

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Robert Kaba Alhassan

Full Text Available Health worker density per 1000 population in Ghana is one of the lowest in the world estimated to be 2.3, below the global average of 9.3. Low health worker motivation induced by poor working conditions partly explain this challenge. Albeit the wage bill for public sector health workers is about 90% of domestic government expenditure on health in countries such as Ghana, staff motivation and performance output remain a challenge, suggesting the need to complement financial incentives with non-financial incentives through a community-based approach. In this study, a systematic community engagement (SCE intervention was implemented to engage community groups in healthcare quality assessment to promote mutual collaboration between clients and healthcare providers, and enhance health worker motivation levels. SCE involves structured use of existing community groups and associations to assess healthcare quality in health facilities. Identified quality gaps are discussed with healthcare providers, improvements made and rewards given to best performing facilities for closing quality care gaps.To evaluate the effect of SCE interventions on health worker motivation and experiences with clients.The study is a cluster randomized trial involving health workers in private (n = 38 and public (n = 26 primary healthcare facilities in two administrative regions in Ghana. Out of 324 clinical and non-clinical staff randomly interviewed at baseline, 234 (72% were successfully followed at end-line and interviewed on workplace motivation factors and personal experiences with clients. Propensity score matching and difference-in-difference estimations were used to estimate treatment effect of the interventions on staff motivation.Intrinsic (non-financial work incentives including cordiality with clients and perceived career prospects appeared to be prime sources of motivation for health staff interviewed in intervention health facilities while financial incentives were

Assessing the Impact of Community Engagement Interventions on Health Worker Motivation and Experiences with Clients in Primary Health Facilities in Ghana: A Randomized Cluster Trial.

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Alhassan, Robert Kaba; Nketiah-Amponsah, Edward; Spieker, Nicole; Arhinful, Daniel Kojo; Rinke de Wit, Tobias F

2016-01-01

Health worker density per 1000 population in Ghana is one of the lowest in the world estimated to be 2.3, below the global average of 9.3. Low health worker motivation induced by poor working conditions partly explain this challenge. Albeit the wage bill for public sector health workers is about 90% of domestic government expenditure on health in countries such as Ghana, staff motivation and performance output remain a challenge, suggesting the need to complement financial incentives with non-financial incentives through a community-based approach. In this study, a systematic community engagement (SCE) intervention was implemented to engage community groups in healthcare quality assessment to promote mutual collaboration between clients and healthcare providers, and enhance health worker motivation levels. SCE involves structured use of existing community groups and associations to assess healthcare quality in health facilities. Identified quality gaps are discussed with healthcare providers, improvements made and rewards given to best performing facilities for closing quality care gaps. To evaluate the effect of SCE interventions on health worker motivation and experiences with clients. The study is a cluster randomized trial involving health workers in private (n = 38) and public (n = 26) primary healthcare facilities in two administrative regions in Ghana. Out of 324 clinical and non-clinical staff randomly interviewed at baseline, 234 (72%) were successfully followed at end-line and interviewed on workplace motivation factors and personal experiences with clients. Propensity score matching and difference-in-difference estimations were used to estimate treatment effect of the interventions on staff motivation. Intrinsic (non-financial) work incentives including cordiality with clients and perceived career prospects appeared to be prime sources of motivation for health staff interviewed in intervention health facilities while financial incentives were ranked

Assessing the Impact of Community Engagement Interventions on Health Worker Motivation and Experiences with Clients in Primary Health Facilities in Ghana: A Randomized Cluster Trial

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Alhassan, Robert Kaba; Nketiah-Amponsah, Edward; Spieker, Nicole; Arhinful, Daniel Kojo; Rinke de Wit, Tobias F.

2016-01-01

Background Health worker density per 1000 population in Ghana is one of the lowest in the world estimated to be 2.3, below the global average of 9.3. Low health worker motivation induced by poor working conditions partly explain this challenge. Albeit the wage bill for public sector health workers is about 90% of domestic government expenditure on health in countries such as Ghana, staff motivation and performance output remain a challenge, suggesting the need to complement financial incentives with non-financial incentives through a community-based approach. In this study, a systematic community engagement (SCE) intervention was implemented to engage community groups in healthcare quality assessment to promote mutual collaboration between clients and healthcare providers, and enhance health worker motivation levels. SCE involves structured use of existing community groups and associations to assess healthcare quality in health facilities. Identified quality gaps are discussed with healthcare providers, improvements made and rewards given to best performing facilities for closing quality care gaps. Purpose To evaluate the effect of SCE interventions on health worker motivation and experiences with clients. Methods The study is a cluster randomized trial involving health workers in private (n = 38) and public (n = 26) primary healthcare facilities in two administrative regions in Ghana. Out of 324 clinical and non-clinical staff randomly interviewed at baseline, 234 (72%) were successfully followed at end-line and interviewed on workplace motivation factors and personal experiences with clients. Propensity score matching and difference-in-difference estimations were used to estimate treatment effect of the interventions on staff motivation. Results Intrinsic (non-financial) work incentives including cordiality with clients and perceived career prospects appeared to be prime sources of motivation for health staff interviewed in intervention health facilities while

'Health is wealth and wealth is health'--perceptions of health and ill-health among female sex workers in Savannakhet, Laos.

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Phrasisombath, Ketkesone; Thomsen, Sarah; Sychareun, Vanphanom; Faxelid, Elisabeth

2013-01-02

Female sex workers (FSWs) are vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and other types of health problems and they also encounter socio-economic difficulties. Efforts to develop effective health intervention programs for FSWs have been hampered by a lack of information on why FSWs do not seek or delay seeking treatment for STIs. To further understand their reasons, our study applied a qualitative approach to explore perceptions of health and ill-health among FSWs in Savannakhet province in Laos. Fifteen in-depth interviews were conducted with FSWs in Savannakhet province. Latent content analysis was used for analysis. Sex workers' definitions of health and wealth are intertwined. Thus, good health was described as strongly related to wealth, and wealth was needed in order to be healthy. This is explained in two sub-themes: health is necessary for work and income and ill-health creates social and economic vulnerability. Female sex workers' beliefs and perceptions about health and ill-health were dominated by their economic need, which in turn was influenced by expectations and demands from their families.

Security and skills: the two key issues in health worker migration

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Posy Bidwell

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Migration of health workers from Africa continues to undermine the universal provision of quality health care. South Africa is an epicentre for migration – it exports more health workers to high-income countries than any other African country and imports health workers from its lower-income neighbours to fill the gap. Although an inter-governmental agreement in 2003 reduced the very high numbers migrating from South Africa to the United Kingdom, migration continues to other high-income English-speaking countries and few workers seem to return although the financial incentive to work abroad has lessened. A deeper understanding of reasons for migration from South Africa and post-migration experiences is therefore needed to underpin policy which is developed in order to improve retention within source countries and encourage return. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 South African doctors and nurses who had migrated to the United Kingdom. Interviews explored factors influencing the decision to migrate and post-migration experiences. Results: Salary, career progression, and poor working conditions were not major push factors for migration. Many health workers reported that they had previously overcome these issues within the South African healthcare system by migrating to the private sector. Overwhelmingly, the major push factors were insecurity, high levels of crime, and racial tension. Although the wish to work and train in what was perceived to be a first-class care system was a pull factor to migrate to the United Kingdom, many were disappointed by the experience. Instead of obtaining new skills, many (particularly nurses felt they had become ‘de-skilled’. Many also felt that working conditions and opportunities for them in the UK National Health Service (NHS compared unfavourably with the private sector in South Africa. Conclusions: Migration from South Africa seems unlikely to diminish until the major

Security and skills: the two key issues in health worker migration.

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Bidwell, Posy; Laxmikanth, Pallavi; Blacklock, Claire; Hayward, Gail; Willcox, Merlin; Peersman, Wim; Moosa, Shabir; Mant, David

2014-01-01

Migration of health workers from Africa continues to undermine the universal provision of quality health care. South Africa is an epicentre for migration--it exports more health workers to high-income countries than any other African country and imports health workers from its lower-income neighbours to fill the gap. Although an inter-governmental agreement in 2003 reduced the very high numbers migrating from South Africa to the United Kingdom, migration continues to other high-income English-speaking countries and few workers seem to return although the financial incentive to work abroad has lessened. A deeper understanding of reasons for migration from South Africa and post-migration experiences is therefore needed to underpin policy which is developed in order to improve retention within source countries and encourage return. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 South African doctors and nurses who had migrated to the United Kingdom. Interviews explored factors influencing the decision to migrate and post-migration experiences. Salary, career progression, and poor working conditions were not major push factors for migration. Many health workers reported that they had previously overcome these issues within the South African healthcare system by migrating to the private sector. Overwhelmingly, the major push factors were insecurity, high levels of crime, and racial tension. Although the wish to work and train in what was perceived to be a first-class care system was a pull factor to migrate to the United Kingdom, many were disappointed by the experience. Instead of obtaining new skills, many (particularly nurses) felt they had become 'de-skilled'. Many also felt that working conditions and opportunities for them in the UK National Health Service (NHS) compared unfavourably with the private sector in South Africa. Migration from South Africa seems unlikely to diminish until the major concerns over security, crime, and racial tensions are resolved